A first taste of potency
by MissLizet
Summary: On the way back from Hogwarts after her fourth year, Hermione receives an odd note with a riddle. Driven by curiosity, she follows the instructions. At the start of her fifth year, Hermione finally receives an answer, an invitation. Soon she learns all about a secret society and is asked to join it. If she does, her life is in for a drastic change of direction.
1. Chapter 1

So, I have decided to write another story. I wrote some in the past, but was never happy enough with them to actually post them. I feel better about this one though, so here it goes.

Hope you'll enjoy!

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Chapter 1

My trunk was packed, Crookshanks was stuffed into his travel basket, which he wasn't very happy about, and I was now waiting with Harry and Ron in the crowded entrance hall for the carriages to take us to Hogsmeade station. The weather outside was wonderful and I couldn't wait to go home. There is a lake nearby my house, with an old willow besides it that I had missed to read under.

"'arry!" I turned around along with Harry and Ron to see that Fleur Delacour was approaching us. I gave an internal sigh. I had nothing against the girl really, but I could already see Ron's face chancing and found it very tiring. Fleur started talking to Harry, but I didn't listen, instead looking far across the grounds. I could see Hagrid helping Madame Maxime to harness the huge winged horses. The carriage was almost ready to go.

I heard Ron compliment Fleur and scowled. Really, had the boy no pride?

Once Fleur had taken off again, Ron apparently paid attention to his surroundings again.

"Wonder how the Durmstrang students are getting back." He said. "D'you reckon they can steer that ship without Karkaroff?" I was about to reply, when another voice beat me to it.

"Karkaroff did not steer," said a gruff voice. "He stayed in his cabin and let us do the vork." Viktor had come to say goodbye to me. I felt some slight fluttering in my stomach. We couldn't ever work, but boy, this was one hell of a man.

"Could I have a vord?" He asked me.

"Oh… yes… all right," I said, stumbling over a simple answer. He motioned for me to follow him, which I did. I heard Ron call something about hurrying, but ignored him.

Viktor lead me to a secluded corner of the entrance hall and handed me a slip of paper.

"Vill you write to me?" He asked.

"Oh Viktor, of course I will write." I said. I saw that Viktor wanted to say more, but cut him off.

"Look Viktor, you don't have to say it. We couldn't ever work, but I like you a lot, so I'd like to stay in touch." I said very quickly. I was afraid it was too quick for Viktor, but after a moment his eyes lit up and he nodded.

"Vat I wanted to say completely." He said with another nod and pulled me in for a hug.

"Be safe." He murmured into my ear just before he let me go.

"You to." I said softly. He smiled and took my hand. He brought me back to Harry and Ron. Ron stared at me, but I looked back at him impassive. He should really get over whatever was bothering him about me and Viktor.

"I liked Diggory, I hope he recovers," Viktor said all of the sudden to Harry. "He vos alvays polite to me. Alvays. Even though I vos from Durmstrang – with Karkaroff." Viktor was scowling, as he did often.

"Have you got a new headmaster yet?" Harry asked politely. Viktor shrugged and help out his hand to shake Harry's hand. He also extended his hand to Ron, who seemed to have some internal struggle. Viktor gave up and started to walk away, when Ron suddenly burst out, "Can I have your autograph?" I turned my head, smiling to myself, while a surprised Viktor signed a slip of parchment for Ron.

By the time we were all seated in one of the carriages, Harry and I were still sniggering about Ron's face. Ron scowled at us.

"Shut it you two." He said with a dark face. I had to bite on my tongue to not give some retort, but it was the last day in a long time that I would see him, so I held it in.

We managed to get our own compartment on the train. I had released Crookshanks and he was now curled up in the seat next to me like a large, furry ginger cushion.

Harry, Ron and I talked more freely now than we had since the last task. It seemed that Harry was less troubled since Dumbledore's speech yesterday and didn't cringe when we discussed something concerning the last task. We only stopped our discussions of what actions Dumbledore might be taking, when the lunch trolley arrived.

Harry and Ron both bought some lunch and a few treats, but I felt the need to stock up a little. My parents are a bit any sweets, so we never had much in house. My arms filled with candy, I returned to the compartment and stuffed it all away into my schoolbag. I came across the Daily Prophet, which I hadn't read yet, so I pulled it out.

I saw Harry cast an unsure look at it.

"There is nothing in there. You can look for yourself, but there's nothing at all. I've been checking every day. Just a small piece the day after the third task saying you won the tournament. They didn't even mention Cedric's near death. Nothing about any of it. If you ask me, Fudge is forcing them to keep quiet." I told Harry, but he still looked unsure.

"He'll never keep Rita quiet," said Harry. "Not on a story like this."

"Oh, Rita hasn't written anything at all since the last task." I said, trying to contain the glee in my voice. "As a matter of fact." I added. "Rita Skeeter isn't going to be writing anything at all for a while. Not unless she wants me to spill the beans on her." There, I didn't blurt it all out at once. Well done.

"What are you talking about?" Ron asked.

"I found out how she was listening in on private conversations when she wasn't supposed to be coming onto the grounds." I said in a rush.

"How was she doing it?" Harry asked the obvious question.

"How did you find out?" Asked Ron.

"Well, it was you, really, who gave me the idea, Harry." I said, a sly smile playing around my lips.

"Did I?" Said a perplexed Harry, "How?"

"Bugging." I said with glee.

"But you said it didn't work – " Harry started to say.

"Oh not electronic bugs," I cut him off. "No, you see… Rits Skeeter" A moment for suspension. "is an unregistered Animagus! She can turn –" I pulled the jar containing Rita from my bag. "- into a beetle."

"You're kidding." Said Ron. "You haven't… she's not…"

"Oh yes she is." I said, nearly bouncing out of my seat, holding the jar out to them.

"That's never – you're kidding –" Ron whispered, taking the jar and looking at the fat beetle inside.

"No, I'm not." I said, a large smile on my face. "I caught her on the windowsill in the hospital wing. Look very closely, and you'll notice the markings around her antennae are exactly like those foul glasses she wears." I saw the realisation dawn on them. Harry added his own experiences to my theory and everything fit. Even Ron saw it.

I took the jar back from Ron and smiled at Rita.

"I've told her I'll let her out when we get back to London." I said. "I've put an Unbreakable Charm on the jar, you see, so she can't transform. And I've told her she's to keep her quill to herself for a whole year. See if she can't break the habit of writing horrible lies about people."

I put the jar back in my schoolbag and heard the door of the compartment slid open.

"Very clever, Granger." I sighed. Malfoy, really. And flanked by Crabbe and Goyle of course. All three looking a little bit too pleased with themselves. I just ignored all that was being said, while Malfoy riled Harry up. Harry should really learn to ignore this sort of behaviour. That is, until I heard him say something about Cedric. I jumped up and fired a spell at Malfoy.

It was as though someone had exploded a box of fireworks within the compartment. Blinded by the blaze of the spells that had blasted from every direction, deafened by a series of bangs, I blinked and looked down at the floor.

Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle were all lying unconscious in the doorway. We were on our feet, all three of us having used a different hex. Nor were we the only ones to have done so.

"Thought we'd see what those three were up to," said Fred matter-of-factly, stepping onto Goyle and into the compartment. He had his wand out, and so did George, who was careful to tread on Malfoy as he followed Fred inside.

"Interesting effect," said George, looking down at Crabbe.

"Who used the Furnunculus Curse?"

"Me," said Harry.

"Odd," said George lightly. "I used Jelly-Legs. Looks as though those two shouldn't be mixed. He seems to have sprouted little tentacles all over his face. Well, let's not leave them here, they don't add much to the decor."

Ron, Harry and George started to move Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle out of the compartment, while avoiding having to touch them too much. Fred came to sit beside me, dropping Crookshanks into my lap. When Crookshanks had calmed down from that, apparently terribly offending, act, Fred had pulled out a set of Exploding Snap.

"Exploding Snap, anyone?" He asked. I didn't feel like it, preferring to finish the Daily Prophet, but Harry and Ron were game.

They were about halfway through the game when Harry asked who Fred and George had been blackmailing and I started to pay attention again. Fred revealed that it had been Ludo Bagman, concerning their bet about the Quidditch World Cup.

"Well, the git paid us in leprechaun gold he'd caught from the Irish mascots."

"So?"

"So," said Fred impatiently, "it vanished, didn't it? By next morning, it had gone!"

"But – it must've been an accident, mustn't it?" I asked. George laughed bitterly.

"Yeah, that's what we thought, at first. We thought if we just wrote to him, and told him he'd made a mistake, he'd cough up. But nothing doing. Ignored our letter. We kept trying to talk to him about it at Hogwarts, but he was always making some excuse to get away from us."

"In the end, he turned pretty nasty," said Fred. "Told us we were too young to gamble, and he wasn't giving us anything."

"So we asked for our money back," said George glowering.

"He didn't refuse!" I gasped, outraged.

"Right in one." Said Fred and he and George told them the rest of the story until Bagman had fled.

The rest of the journey passed pleasantly enough. The boys kept playing Exploding Snap and I moved from the Daily Prophet to my current book. Before I saw it coming, the train was pulling in at platform nine and three-quarters. I could hear the noise of every student getting up and begin to disembark the train. Ron gave me a hand to walk over the bodies of Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle, and together we walked out onto the platform. We had already passed the barrier and met up with Mrs. Weasley and my parents, when we noticed that Harry had stayed behind. He soon came through though and was immediately swept into a hug by Mrs. Weasley. Ron clapped him on the back and I gave him a quick hug and kiss before following my parents to the car.

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Tell me what you think :)

And if anyone wants to be my beta, be my guest, I welcome help.


	2. Chapter 2

I decided to put up the second chapter as well right now. It was finished anyways.

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Chapter 2

My parents and I were quiet on the car ride home. Dad never liked to talk when he was riding, so mum and I kept quiet for his sake. In my mind I was considering what I would tell them of the events of the past year. In first year I told everything that had happened, but mum and dad had been so very worried about me. Especially when I had been petrified in second year. So when I came back from my third year, I had told them much of what happened, only keeping the worst out, but told it in a way that suggested I had only heard it and had not really been a part of it. Overshadowing it with everything I had learned and my good grades. I could tell them about everything about this year, but a few things. I think that dad might be hesitant about Viktor, though I should tell him. But, maybe, just keep the part of me being kept under the lake for a few hours out of the story. Also, I would need to tell them about the return of Voldemort, but maybe make him a little less intimidating and scary? I was afraid they wouldn't let me return to the wizarding world if they knew the real danger that was out there for muggleborns now. And as of last year, I was rather well known, thanks to bloody Skeeter.

I hardly noticed when dad pulled up on the driveway and mum got out of the car.

"Hermione, you getting out?" Dad asked me.

"Yes daddy." I replied quickly and grabbed Crookshanks next to me. Mum had already gotten my schoolbag and dad dragged my trunk out of the car. Together we walked up to the house. Dad put my trunk in my room, while mum and I walked into the kitchen. I released Crookshanks from his basket and he shot into the living room, nearly knocking mum down. We had just made tea, when dad walked into the kitchen.

As was our tradition, we sat down around the kitchen table, mum poured us each a cup of tea and we talked. Mum and dad caught me up how everything was at their work and with the family and I told them all about Hogwarts. Somewhere during the talk we ordered Chinese food, but kept talking. My mom gushed about the fact that I had had a sort of boyfriends and demanded pictures, while dad quietly sulked (to me and mums entertainment). I produced an old Daily Prophet which announced the Triwizard Champions and thus had a picture of Victor (I had held on to it for that reason). When it was well past dark I told them about how grave Cedric had been injured at the last task and about the return of Lord Voldemort. My parents knew some tales about him, which I had told before and were well enough terrified that I dare not add to their worries, even though they were justified. To lighten up the spirits a bit after that, I also told them about how I captured Skeeter. My dad especially seemed to like this story and was disappointed that I had already let her go at the station.

Completely caught up with my parents, I went to bed exhausted.

The first morning back at home is always a bit disorienting to me. I'm so used to my dorm in Gryffindor tower by now, that my mint green walls were confusing to see first thing in the morning instead of my red bed curtains. It took only a moment for my mind to catch up though and I sat up happily. Crookshanks immediately pounced on me, when he noticed I was awake.

"Hungry, boy?" I asked him smiling. As an answer Crookshanks jumped of the bed and walked to my door. I grinned and got out of bed, slipping into my robe and slippers, and followed Crookshanks to the kitchen. It was still early, but mum was already dressed and having breakfast in the kitchen. I sat down at the table and mum served me some eggs.

"An owl already delivered the Daily Prophet dear. I hope I paid him the right amount." My mum commented, while handing me said paper.

"I'm sure you did fine mum." I said with a smile, opening the Daily Prophet. Again, nothing about Voldemort.

After feeding Crookshanks, mum sat down to and started reading the muggle paper. We had both finished our breakfast by the time dad came down, still in his robe. He grumpily sat down at the kitchen table, while mum fixed him a cup of coffee. He didn't function well before his first cup of the day.

"So hun, what do you want to do today?" Mum asked me. "Your dad and I took the day off to spend some time with you." They couldn't spend too much time away from work together and we were going on a vacation in a few weeks, so they worked until then.

"Can we go to the park?" I asked hopefully. I always liked it there, the old willow especially.

"We can make it a picnic. Does that sound good?" Mum asked. I nodded happily, while dad glared at his cup of coffee.

We spend the day walking about the park, having a long picnic, cooking dinner together and playing a few games. Dad insisted I play chess with him. I had given him a game of Wizards Chess a few years back, so whenever I came home, he wanted to play. Before long it was time to go to bed again.

When I woke up the next morning, my parents were already at work. I ate a silent breakfast while reading the Daily Prophet. I raised my eyebrows when Dumbledore was mentioned in a snide comment. It was pretty unrespectful. Brushing it aside, I went upstairs to take a shower and finally start unpacking. I got all of my clothes out of my trunk and into my closet. My books filled my shelves again and all other trinkets were stashed away too. I emptied my schoolbag, hiding my stash of sweets in my sock drawer. When I had cleared everything, I noticed a scrap of parchment that had fallen to the floor. I unfolded it and was surprised when I didn't recognise it. I didn't even recognise the handwriting on the paper. Curiosity overtook me and I quickly read what was written down.

_If you drop me, I am sure to crack,_

_But smile at me and I'll always smile back._

_Find what's anchored deep into the earth._

_Standing strong and all alone._

_Reaching high into the sky, buy always pointing to the ground._

_Always staring at itself at the edge of the world._

_Hidden away in its soft embrace,_

_A secret embedded shrine lies._

_Put me there, enclosed in black._

_At the first of the red month,_

_When all the light has left._

_Hope to see you at the PA, Hermione!_

I was thoroughly confused that this weird note was actually meant for me. What could it possibly mean? And what was the PA? I quickly read the note again and it was quite obvious to me that it was a riddle. The first sentences were quite easy in my eyes. It was a well-known riddle and described a mirror. The last sentence was obvious as well, nightfall, but the rest seemed gibberish. Did someone expect her to solve this?

Note still in hand, I sat down on my bed. I knew I couldn't let this go unsolved. I was simply too curious to do that. Besides, I wanted to find out how it had gotten between my belongings.

I grabbed myself some paper and a pen and went to work. Anchored, that could mean roots, right? So it must be a tree. A large one, if it was high. But it points towards the ground? In my mind the image of my favourite spot in the park appeared. It must be a willow. As I reread it, it all fitted perfectly. The willow stood alone, at quite a distance from other trees. It stood at the edge of the lake, so it was sort of looking at itself and standing at the edge of the world. It could also create an embrace to something as I well knew. I sat under there quite frequently. A shrine though? I couldn't think of anything that could be described as such. Maybe I ought to go take a look. But I also needed to know what the red month was.

Well, first things first, I decided and took a walk to the park. I quickly arrived where the willow stood and it all fit. I brushed aside some branches to step into its embrace and looked for anything that could be called a shrine, but all I saw was dirt and grass and some stones. Stones! Couldn't a stone be a shrine? I took a better look at the stones. There was a pretty flat one close to the trunk of the tree. I looked back at the riddle to see what was said about the shrine again. It was embedded. I felt around the sides of the stone and found that it went into the ground. This must be it!

Exited that I had finished this part of the riddle, I walked back to the house. So I had to get a mirror, put it in something black and put it on that shrine at the first of a month when night had fallen. Easy enough, but which month could it be? The most logical choices would be either July or September, since they were closest. But September first I could only do so early in the morning, before the Hogwarts express leaves, so I wouldn't be when the light has left, but before the light had arrived. Must be July than. But why is July red I kept wondering.

I had not yet found an answer by the time mum and dad came back from work. So, giving it a try, I asked them about it.

"Do either of you know something about months and colours?" I asked during dinner. Dad shook his head, but mum seemed to think.

"Not really colours no, but there are birthstones matched to each month. So that could give you a colour. Why do you ask dear?" She said after a moment.

"Oh just some research mum." I said with a small smile. Birthstones? I would have to look that up after dinner.

"Well, I'm not sure whether this is reliable information than hunny. I only know about birthstones because of our calendar. There is a short poem for each month."

"Where does it hang?" I asked quickly.

"My workroom." Mum said as I ran from the room and up the stairs. I quickly found the calendar hanging on my mother's wall and searched for July.

_The glowing ruby shall adorn,_

_Those who in July are born;_

_Then they'll be exempt and free_

_From love's doubts and anxiety._

Rubies! Rubies are red, so July must be the red month. I had six days until the first of July, more than enough time to find a mirror. Exited that I had completely solved the riddle and eager for the first, I returned to the kitchen where mum proceeded to question me about my strange behaviour. I felt the need to keep the riddle a secret, so I told her something about the Wizarding world having something similar, even though I didn't have a clue if they had such a thing.

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Again, let me know what you think!


	3. Chapter 3

Well, another chapter already. I'm on a roll!

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Chapter 3

The next day I went out and bought a mirror and black velvet bag. Back at home, I hid them beneath my bed and took up my book. I just had to wait until the first, hopefully I would get to know more than.

The days until the first were quiet ones. I spend my time reading the Daily Prophet and some new books my mum had gotten for me. I grew more outraged at each quip towards Dumbledore and even noticed a few against Harry. They were ridiculing them. I felt a simmering anger at this kind of tactic, but knew that there was little I could do.

My parents started to prepare for our vacation, packing and checking their reservations, they always start early on such matters. We would be going to a small town in France, not far from Paris. We would have all the quiet that the French countryside had to offer, but still be able to visit the numerous museums in Paris. We would be leaving at the third and be staying there for two weeks.

On the day of the first, I woke up and jumped out of bed. This was the day. I might finally find out more about the mysterious note. A bit giddy, I hurried to the kitchen. I couldn't sit still the whole day, couldn't even concentrate at my books. My parents even noticed my odd behaviour when they returned from work. After dinner I quickly excused myself, grabbed the black bag and went out to the park. I was there far too early of course. I still had to wait two full hours until the sun would set. I dropped the bag on top of the stone I had decided would have to be the shrine and waited. Of course, I was still far too excited to sit still quietly, so I wandered around the park, keeping my eye on the willow. I reread the note a few times, to make sure there wasn't anything I had missed, but there wasn't of course. Everything fit perfectly. I wondered what would happen when the sun went down. Would someone come and get the mirror?

But the sun went down and even though I stayed for a full hour after, nothing happened. I must admit I was rather disappointed. I had expected, well, something. Feeling dissatisfied, I finally decided to just leave the mirror and return home. Maybe someone was waiting for me to go? I didn't pay much attention on the way back home, so I barely looked at the woman brushing past me at the entrance to the park. She must be a muggle, no witch I knew, knew how to dress so casually muggle.

Two days later, I left with my parents for France, leaving Crookshanks at a friend of my parents. We rode out to Dover and took the ferry to Calais. Dad entertained himself by making a hundred pictures of me and mum while on the ferry and I had a feeling he would continue to do so the rest of the vacation. Mum and I just pretended to ignore him after a while though.

We arrived at the village around dinner time and quickly picked up the key to the apartment my parents had rented. We dropped of the bags and went out for some dinner. During dinner we planned out the next day. We would take the train to Paris and just explore the centre. We spend the vacation traipsing from museum to museum, eating ice cream and going out to dinner. Dad must have made at least a thousand pictures in the first week alone. I went to visit the magical neighbourhood of Paris on my own during the second week. It reminded me a lot of Diagon Alley, but somehow more refined.

On the 19th, two days after we returned home from our vacation, a letter came from Ron. He asked whether I would like to spend the remainder of the summer with him. He mentioned that Harry might be joining them soon and something about them not being at the Burrow. Odd. But I discussed it with my parents, I rather wanted to go, and we decided that I would leave the next week, on the 26th. I quickly send our reply to Ron, telling him to send his dad to pick me up.

In my last week at home, mum and I went shopping in London for a day. Somewhere during the day I gave in and only rejected things that were too frilly or girly, but mum still managed to buy me a few dresses. She had been so excited when I wrote her last year if she could buy me a dress for the yule ball. Unfortunately, it had caught on and I now possessed more than 5 dresses I could only ever wear to special events and a few more that I could use for more casual wear (though still rather fancy). Also we all went to the theatre one evening, Sunset Boulevard. Mum cried through about half of it, while dad and I found it rather hilarious. We tried not to laugh too hard or mum might hit us with her bag.

When the day came that Mr Weasley was coming to pick me up, both my parents were rather quiet. I had packed up everything I would need for the coming year, leaving my room almost bare, and was now sitting with them at the kitchen table, both having taken the day off.

"You're sure you won't be in any danger, right hun?" Mum asked with a worried voice. They must have remembered all I told them on my first night back.

"I won't be in any danger mum. I told you about Dumbledore, right? My headmaster? He is one of the greatest wizards of our time, probably the greatest one alive. He wouldn't let anything happen to any student of his. You can ask Mr Weasley when he arrives."

"If you're sure hun." Mum said with an unhappy face.

"And I promise to write to you often and I'm sure you could even ask Mr Weasley to keep you up to date as well. He probably won't mind." That seemed to settle them.

Not long after, the doorbell rang and Mr Weasley, together with Ron, had arrived. I gave Ron a quick hug and shook Mr Weasleys hand, before my parents mentioned that they would like to speak to Mr Weasley for a moment. I worried that he might upset them, but when they all reappeared I saw that my parents seemed relieved. I hugged both of them goodbye and left with Mr Weasley and Ron. They had simply apparated over here, so now both Ron and I took one of Mr Weasley arms and we were off.

I had forgotten we weren't going to the Burrow, so when we apparated onto a bleary looking park surrounded by houses I was very surprised. I was even more surprised to see Dumbledore standing a few feet off.

"Ah Arthur, there you are. I was wondering if something had gone wrong."

"Oh nothing Albus. Hermione's parents just needed a little peace of mind from me." Dumbledore nodded at Mr Weasley and then looked at me.

"So Hermione. You must be wondering where we are." I nodded and he continued to speak. "I will explain more to you when we are inside, it's not safe to talk too much out here. I'd like you to read what's on this note and concentrate on it." He handed me a note.

_The headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix may be found at_

_number twelve, Grimmauld Place, London._

"What's the order of the…" I started to ask, but Mr Weasley nudged me and told me that it would be told once we were inside. I saw Dumbledore and Ron walk up to one of the surrounding houses. Had it been there before?

"Please be as quiet as possible until we are in the kitchen." Mr Weasley whispered to me as I followed him inside. Inside the house, it was damp and a sweetish, rotting smell seemed to come from the walls. It felt as though it had been uninhibited for a very long time. When Mr Weasley closed the front door behind us, we were in total darkness. Suddenly though, old gas lamps along the walls lit up and I got to see more of the house. The wallpaper was peeling and the carpet was barely there. At the end of the dreary looking hallway a chandelier filled with cobwebs hung to the ceiling. I noticed much things were shaped like snakes, like the candelabra's and the legs of a table. Where had we gone?

Dumbledore had walked ahead of us and opened a door at the far end of the wall. We all walked through to the kitchen, where Mrs Weasley was already busy with dinner. She looked rather unwell, her skin seemed a bit grey and she had lost a lot of weight.

"Ah Hermione dear, good to see you again." Mrs Weasley said as she noticed them and came to give me a hug.

"Now Molly, Arthur." Dumbledore started, "I'd like a moment alone with Miss Granger and mister Weasley."

"Oh alright." Mrs Weasley replied, casting a worried look to the stove, before following Mr Weasley out of the door. I noticed Mr Weasley took Crookshanks with him as well. Ron and I shared a look of confusion, before looking back at our headmaster.

"Welcome to the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix, Miss Granger. I'm sure mister Weasley will tell you all about it later on, so I'll get to the point. I know you both are dear friends of Mister Potter, so I would like you both to promise me something. The Order should be kept a secret, so I would like you both to promise me to not write to Harry about anything you do while here at headquarters." Dumbledore said.

"But sir, Harry will go bonkers if we don't tell him anything!" Ron exclaimed confused.

"Mister Potter will join you soon enough. Now, will you please promise me so, I have other matters to attend to." He said rather harshly.

"I promise." Both Ron and I murmured. We didn't agree, but Dumbledore probably knows best.

"Good. I'll see you around than. Goodbye." With those words, Dumbledore left the kitchen. Ron and I could only so much at look at each other before Mr and Mrs Weasley reappeared followed by Sirius Black.

"Sirius!" I exclaimed, getting up to hug him. "I didn't know you were still in England." I had rather grown to like him over the past year, secretly exchanging some letters with him as well.

"Hermione." Sirius murmured while he hugged me back. "You look good. Nice tan." He grinned at me.

"You look better than last time I saw you." I shot back. He had become somewhat of a dear friend to me.

"So…" I decided to finally find out what this Order of the Phoenix was. "What? Why? And such." I asked. Sirius laughed, while Ron frowned at us. Sirius launched into an explanation of what the Order was and what house this was. I was appalled to hear he had grown up here.

As dinner time grew closer, more Weasleys and Order members entered the kitchen. Fred and George apparated in, aggravating Mrs Weasley in the process. Ginny appeared, holding Crookshanks in her arms. The two older brothers of the Weasleys were there as well, Bill and Charlie. I hadn't met them before and was especially intimidated by Charlie, the dragon trainer. Remus Lupin walked in and joined mine and Sirius' conversation. A lot of unknown people appeared as well. I was introduced to Nymphadora Tonks, who insisted I call her Tonks. A dark skinned man with a hug earring introduced himself as Kingsley. Apparently he and Tonks were both aurors.

Mrs Weasley had enough dinner for all of them and it was only when we all sat down and started to eat that I noticed the absence of Percy.

"Ginny, why isn't Percy here?" I asked softly. Ginny looked shocked and motioned for me to be quiet.

"I'll tell you later. Please don't ask here." She said, looking quite frazzled. I wondered what was up, but listened and continued eating. It was a nice evening, catching up with all that had happened in the last week. I discusses the Daily Prophet with Remus and he confirmed my concerns. They were really trying to make Dumbledore and Harry look bad. I stayed up talking so late, that when Ginny brought me to our room, I completely forgot to ask her about Percy again and fell right asleep.

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Again, let me know what you think!


	4. Chapter 4

I think I'll try to upload a chapter every other day. It seems like a reachable goal.

Enjoy!

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Chapter 4

I was a bit disoriented, waking up in a room filled with cobwebs and with such a stuffy damp air surrounding me. Ginny quickly reminded me of where I was though. We took turns using the shower and dressed in silence, before trudging down to breakfast. Both of us still bleary eyed and barely awake. I was usually much more awake after a shower.

Not many people were up yet, only a part of the Weasley clan and Sirius sat at the breakfast table, most of them looking just as sleepy as I felt. Mrs Weasley was making bacon and eggs and gave both me and Ginny an ample amount.

After breakfast, Mrs Weasley announced to us that we would be cleaning the house today. Apparently they had been at it since they moved here, since there were groans coming from the four present Weasley children. Sirius explained something about the house to me yesterday, so I figured cleaning was rather necessary.

"Girls?" Mrs Weasley asked me and Ginny. "Could you start with the bedrooms on the first and second floor? Fred and George, take Ron and you can start on the third floor. Just open windows and remove all the dirt for now. Throw away any linens that are unusable, I'll get new ones. And leave the closets for now. That's a whole lot of nasty I don't want to get into yet. Let's focus on liveable for now. Sirius, will you go with the girls? Help them with Buckbeak." Mrs Weasley rattled off.

Ginny and I went back to the room we had slept in together with Sirius. Thanks to Sirius' magic, we were quickly done removing everything nasty. I finally got to ask Ginny about Percy and was horrified by what I heard. That Percy had said such things to Mr Weasley. I knew he was ambitious, but I had hoped he would be more loyal to his family than that. Ginny also explained what happened whenever someone mentioned him near her parents and I was glad no one had heard me ask her about it during dinner yesterday.

When we got to the second floor, Sirius told us that Buckbeak was in one of the rooms. I was still a bit hesitant about such a big beast, but wanted to see him nevertheless. Ginny remained in the other bedroom though, where Ron slept.

Sirius went in front when we went into Buckbeak's room. He bowed and almost immediately received a bow in return. They must have gotten quite used to each other. Buckbeak noticed me when Sirius stepped aside and I quickly bowed as well. He took a bit more time with me, but bowed as well. Sirius went to pet him, while I just looked at him. I had forgotten quite how big he was. Had I really mounted that? I did step closer to pet him as well after a moment, and it seemed that Buckbeak had remembered me. He nudged my hand friendly as though he was telling me not to be afraid. I grinned back at him.

Sirius fed him a few rabbits and we went to join Ginny again. We had done everything that Mrs Weasley had asked us to do, so we went to the drawing room on the first floor. I immediately noticed the huge family tree, but seeing Sirius' sour look towards it, I didn't ask.

A few days went by in this fashion. From breakfast till dinner, Mrs Weasley had us cleaning up the house and after dinner we would stay in the kitchen playing games and talking. Unless there was an Order meeting, which we weren't allowed to attend. I did meet a lot of new people in my week there. A lot of Order members would come around leaving messages, and they would often eat with us too. I was surprised to even see professor Snape come in for a meeting once. He never stayed for dinner though.

I had a good time, despite the gloomy surroundings, but I missed Harry a lot. It was nearing his birthday and all I could write on his birthday card was "I expect we'll be seeing you quite soon", which I hated. I wanted to tell him that I would come and get him tomorrow, but of course I couldn't. Ron and I tried to tell Dumbledore that he should really get Harry, but he didn't have any time for us, so we went ignored.

I spend a lot more time around Fred and George than I ever had and learned that they were really rather smart, even though their OWLs had been rather disappointing to Mrs Weasley. I actually liked spending time with them when they weren't all out annoying. I usually avoided them when Charlie was in the house. They tried all they could to prank Charlie, but Charlie always saw right through it and spun it against them. Also I didn't know what it was exactly, but I got awfully nervous around Charlie. I would often drop things when he walked into a room unexpectedly or stutter if he asked me a question. Ginny was convinced I had a crush on him and maybe she was a bit right. He was rather handsome after all.

I was still writing a lot of people too. Viktor and I wrote to each other almost weekly. He was playing a lot of Quidditch again, now the season had started again. Also he kept me up to date about the search for Karkaroff and who would be the new headmaster of Durmstrang. His parents were having quite a big say in the last apparently. In turn I kept him up to date about all the things our Ministry was doing to keep the return of Voldemort a secret. I thought it was nice to have someone to rant to about such things. I did a lot of ranting with Remus, if he came by, but it was still nice. I felt that Viktor liked it too, even though it was perhaps less than what he had fist intended when he asked me to come to Bulgaria with him. He even wrote about meeting some girl sometime during the summer, so I figured he wasn't overly bothered about us not working out as more than friends.

I also wrote to Padma every now and then. We had gotten a bit closer studying together last year and found we had a lot of the same interests. She was also the one to urge me to just let my mum buy me some dresses. What could it hurt after all?

During summers I also liked to keep a loose contact with professor McGonagall. When at Hogwarts, she would invite me for tea every few weeks. I had learned so much from her and we had the best discussions. Transfiguration was probably my favourite subject, though potions and arithmancy were close behind.

Of course I was also keeping contact with Harry. It pained me to have to keep so much of my daily life from him. Certainly when I usually wrote him about every little detail about my days to try and cheer him up. He must be so confused that I stopped doing that when I arrived at the headquarters. I hoped he would be brought to us soon, so he wouldn't feel completely left out, but with how Dumbledore was behaving I feared the worst.

It was on the second of August, just as we sat dawn for dinner, that a haggard looking man rushed into the kitchen, an alarmed look on his face.

"Get Dumbledore!" He called out. All the members of the Order currently in the kitchen jumped up. Sirius grabbed a long red and gold feather from somewhere and threw it into the fire, while the rest of them crowded the man.

"Mundungus, what has happened?"

"Is Harry safe?"

"Why are you not on your post?"

The man, apparently called Mundungus, didn't have a chance to answer, before Dumbledore walked into the kitchen. He looked about for a short moment, before turning his gaze to Mundungus.

"What had happened?" He said, his voice dark and serious.

"Dementors. Harry used his patronus." Dumbledore's eyes widened.

"Molly, get the children out of here." Dumbledore said as a side comment and continued to Mundungus. "Why did Harry have to use his patronus?"

Ginny, Ron and I didn't hear much else, as Mrs Weasley quickly shoved us out of the kitchen. Fred and George posed a bit more resistance, but were shoved out after us. Together, we all went to the drawing room on the first floor, leaving the door open to try and hear more. We were all deadly quiet. Dementors. Why would there be Dementors in Little Whinging? In silence we looked at each other, our faces grave. What would this mean to Harry? He couldn't be expelled, could he?

Barely five minutes had passed, when they heard the kitchen door open and someone rushed out of the house. Also Mrs Weasley was coming up the stairs.

"Come down for dinner now." She said, sounding exhausted and still a bit scared. No one of us asked her anything on the way down. We figured they would tell us something in the kitchen. Though, when we arrived there, no one seemed ready to speak. Ron was the first to ask.

"So, what's going to happen to Harry?"

The adults in the room all looked at each other, deliberating, before Remus spoke.

"We don't know yet. He has used underage magic and the ministry has been waiting for an opportunity like this. Dumbledore has gone to try and salvage things. I'm sure Mr Weasley will keep us up to date, Bill just flooed him to update him." Fred and George tried to get more information out of them, but apparently this was all we would know for now. I looked at Ginny and saw the same fear in her eyes that I felt. What would the ministry do?

A few hours went by, while we all sat in the kitchen after dinner. We were pretty quiet, still waiting for any news about the ministry. It must be nearing 8 when the fire lit up green and Mr Weasleys head was to be seen in the fireplace.

"Harry will have a hearing on the twelfth. He won't be expelled at least until then. Dumbledore is planning to get him over here before then. I'll be home soon." And he disappeared from the fire. Sirius looked thoroughly relieved and rushed from the kitchen. The rest of us breathed in relief. Harry was fine for now. And Dumbledore would manage that hearing, we were sure of it.

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I'd very much love to hear what you think about the story, just one word would make my day!


	5. Chapter 5

And still keeping up with posting every other day :)

This chapter was necessairy, from next chapter on you will learn more about the order and things will really start to speed up. Life outside of Hogwarts just isn't all that interesting right now.

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Chapter 5

Late in the evening, when Ginny was already asleep, I heard something knocking on our window. I went to open it up and saw it was Hedwig, holding on to a few letters. She dropped one for me and hopped to the door, which I opened for her.

With Hedwig gone, I hastily opened the letter.

_I've just been attacked by Dementors and I might be expelled from Hogwarts. I want to know what's going on and when I'm going to get out of here._

Oh Harry, I sighed. I wanted so badly to tell him everything, but Mr Weasley had told us to not write to Harry anymore. We could talk when we saw him. Sad, I went back to bed, but I barely slept that night.

The next morning at breakfast, I noticed that Sirius' fingers were covered with little wounds.

"Sirius, what happened to your hand?" I asked worried.

Sirius looked glumly at his hand, "It seems that Harry really want's some answers. Hedwig has been pecking me since she delivered a note from him yesterday."

"I got a note as well." I said quietly.

When Ron appeared, his fingers were bloody as well.

"Watch out for Hedwig, Hermione, she's on a warpath." He said darkly, falling into the chair next to me.

Later that day, when I had been helping Mrs Weasley clean out the long unused pantry and took a bit of rest in my room, I found out just how badly Hedwig was behaving. She had grabbed the note Harry send me yesterday and dropped into my lap as soon as I entered the room. She sat next to me and when I made no move to start writing a reply, pecked me harshly in my finger.

"Hedwig! Ow." I exclaimed, but Hedwig just looked at the note and at me again. This continued for quite some time, while I tried to get het calmed down. She wouldn't accept treats, wouldn't be touched and apparently didn't listen to me. By the time I gave up, both my hands were bloodied and bruised, but Hedwig still hadn't calmed down. Time for the big guns, I decided, leaving the room, shutting Hedwig inside.

"Fred? George?" I asked while knocking on their door on the third floor.

"Come in." They chimed in synchronisation. I hesitantly opened their door, expecting something to fly in my face or whatever, but nothing happened. Fred and George were sitting on their respective beds, with some flesh coloured strings in between them.

"What's that?" I asked.

"New invention." George said curtly.

"What brought you here?" Fred asked, changing the subject.

"Oh, I would like your help with something."

"Ask away." Fred said with a smile, dropping the flesh coloured strings to the ground.

"Well, Hedwig keeps pecking me, Ron and Sirius and we can't get her to calm down. Could you maybe trap her or something, to keep her from pecking us until she calms down?"

This seemed to attract George, as he suddenly perked up. "Sure thing Hermione." He said.

"Where is she now?" Fred asked.

"Ginny's and mine bedroom. I locked her in." Both of the twins grinned at me.

"Give us a moment." They said together and disapparated. I was just about to pick up some of the strings when, with two loud BANGS, Fred and George were back in the room. George had Hedwig in his arms, while she tried very hard to escape, but Fred was quick to grab a bow and George stuffed her in there, while Fred magically closed the box and created some air holes.

"There you go Hermione."

"Be sure to feed her." The twins said with big smiles as I took Hedwig from them and went to find Ron.

That evening, there was another Order meeting. Fred and George decided to share their newest invention with us. Extendable Ears.

It were flesh coloured strings of rope with an ear on one end. You could put the other end in your ear and hear everything the ear on the far end heard. I thought it was brilliant. When I told the twins this, they acted very flattered, but hid it by making a ton of stupid remarks.

The Extendable Ears made sure that we sort of knew what happened during the meeting. Not everything, since Mrs Weasley came to check us every half hour or something, but still. We knew they were discussing how to get Harry over here. They wanted to fly, which I thought was a rubbish idea, but I was sure that Harry would like it. Besides what day, we couldn't find out how late Harry would arrive, so we figured it would be sometime after the meeting that day.

The days until Harry arrived were anything from interesting. Mrs Weasley still had us doing chores, but real boring stuff, like the dining room. Hedwig did calm down after about a day in the box and didn't peck us anymore when she was let out, going to sit quietly with Pig. I dug around the small library Grimmauld Place has and found a law book. When I had assured myself that Harry could not, by law, be expelled from Hogwarts, I calmed down somewhat. Even though the book was 50 years old. Not that much could have changed.

The evening that Harry was to arrive at Grimmauld place, we were all rather quiet. None of the adults had bothered to tell us anything more than that he would arrive somewhere tonight. We all planned to stay in the kitchen until he arrived, spending our evening as we mostly did, so we were rather disappointed when we were shoved out for an Order meeting. Fred and George had the Extendable Ears at the ready, but they didn't seem to work anymore and we couldn't figure out why. Every time they got close to the door, they were thrown back through the hall. Ron and I left the twins and Ginny to figure it out and went up to his room.

"How d'you reckon he'll react when he finds out we've been here almost two weeks together?" Ron asked glumly. Somewhere today he had stopped being cheerful about Harry's impending arrival and instead started to worry about how angry Harry might be. We both knew Harry would be in a foul mood.

Ron and I were still glumly wondering how Harry might react when we heard something out on the square. We both rushed to the window, excitement bubbling through my stomach.

"Moody took the lights away," Ron commented, "We can't see a thing."

"I think I heard the door downstairs," I replied, "Let's go listen." Together we went to the door, opened it a crack and tried if we could hear something. There were some vague whispers, before we hear the voice of Ron's mum.

"Harry is here!" Ron said excitedly, before pulling away from the door. I felt a bit nervous, seeing Harry again. I was glad he was finally here, but he would be so mad at us.

A few moments later, the door opened and Harry stood in the opening. I rushed at him, hugging him close.

"Harry! Oh, how are you? Are you all right? Have you been furious with us? I bet you have, I know our letters were useless – but we couldn't tell you anything, Dumbledore made us swear we wouldn't, oh, we've got so much to tell you, and you've got to tell us – the Dementors! When we heard – and the Ministry hearing – it's just outrageous, I've looked it all up, they can't expel you, they just can't there's provision in the Decree for the Restriction of Underage Sorcery for the use of magic in life-threatening situations —"

Ron finally cut me off, saying Harry could use some air. Hedwig took that moment to soar down and land on Harry's shoulder.

Ron started to tell Harry about her behaviour, showing the half healed wound on his index finger. Harry looked a bit sheepish, but defended himself by saying that he had wanted answers. Ron and I were immediately on our toes.

We tried to keep him calm and explain, but it was no use, Harry was mad, we knew it. And when Ron dared to suggest he had been safer with the muggles, Harry really exploded.

He started shouting and no matter what either Ron or I said, he wouldn't calm down. Eventually he seemed to have gotten it all out and he fell silent again.

"What is this place anyway?" he asked after the silence dragged on too long.

"Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix," said Ron at once, eager to please Harry now he seemed to have calmed down a bit. When he asked more, I too told him all he wanted to know. Still, Harry didn't seem pleased.

"Well?" he demanded, looking at the both of us. We were flabbergasted.

"Er," said Ron. "Well what?"

"Voldemort!" said Harry furiously, and both Ron and I cringed.

"What's happening? What's he up to? Where is he? What are we doing to stop him?" Ron and I shared an uneasy look, before I started to explain that we didn't really know. When Harry looked even darker, I started to spill everything we did know. I told him about the twins Extendable Ears and all we found out through them.

We still hadn't completely succeeded in calming Harry down, when suddenly two load cracks were heard and Fred and George materialized in the middle of the room.

"Stop doing that!" I said weakly to the twins, secretly glad that they had come to our rescue. They joked around Harry a bit, making it hard for him to stay mad for long. When Ginny walked into the room a few moments later, I was sure Harry would stop sulking soon.

They started discussing completely different things. Apparently Ginny had found out why the Extendable Ears hadn't worked earlier.

By the time Ron was explaining about Percy, Harry seemed to have calmed down completely and seemed worried for the Weasleys. There was a close call when I mentioned something about the Daily Prophets propaganda, but Harry didn't explode again.

After Mrs Weasley had come up to call us for dinner, Ron and I had a moment alone with Harry. Luckily he seemed to have forgiven us, even though he still wasn't happy with us right now.

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Let me know what you think!


	6. Chapter 6

I'm sorry if the story drags on a bit to much till now. I promise that now Hermione is back at Hogwarts things are going to speed up a lot! Please bear with me.

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Chapter 6 

In the days leading up to Harry's hearing, he was quickly enrolled in the way things were done at Grimmauld Place. He was cleaning right alongside of us, seeming to enjoy it more than we ever did. Ron and I were happy to have him with us again. It had been a bit weird with just the two of us. When we were talking there would be holes in the conversation that were normally filled by one of Harry's side comment. We were both a bit thrown off when they didn't come, so it was good that Harry was back with us.

The evening before Harry's hearing, when Harry had disappeared together with Sirius upstairs, I celebrated Ginny's birthday together with the Weasleys and Remus. I had bought her a book of spells concerning your beauty. Glamours and transfiguration mostly, but there were some neat spells in there to keep your skin clean and such. I gave it to her away from her brothers' eyes and she thanked me more than once for that little thoughtfulness.

Harry left for his hearing early the next morning, before either Ron or I had woken up. I was very anxious about the outcome of the hearing. I knew the ministry had no ground to stand on, but still… they were so anti Dumbledore and Harry that I had to worry.

When Mr Weasley dropped Harry off in the afternoon, I ran to the kitchen, desperate to know that he would be returning to Hogwarts with us.

In the few weeks remaining of the vacation, Ron, Harry and I spend as much time together as possible. Often they would play Wizards Chess, while I was reading nearby, but we were all used to that by now.

When it was the 29th, 3 days before we had to go back to Hogwarts, I started to wonder why the Hogwarts letters hadn't arrived yet. There was no one from Hogwarts around to ask though and Mrs Weasley only suggested that Professor McGonagall might have been a bit distracted this summer and that they would probably be here tomorrow. They weren't though and now I wasn't the only one to wonder.

We were all relieved to see one of the big Hogwarts owls at breakfast the next day, six thick envelopes in his talons. Mrs Weasley passed them around, Ron taking his and Harry's upstairs where Harry was.

I quickly opened my letter to see that there were not 2, but 4 letters inside. The first two were the usual reminder that the year started on the first of September and the list of supplies I would need this year. The third was a notification that I had been made a prefect! That's right, I had nearly forgotten. I wondered if Harry would be made a prefect as well. I left the badge inside the envelop, before Mrs Weasley would start to fuss and opened the last letter.

_Dear Hermione,_

_I am so glad you figured out my last note! Someone told me I had made it too difficult, but I knew you would know what to do. So congratulations. _

_Also, since you completed the first task, I am allowed to invite you to a meeting. I hope you figure it out, the clue as to where and when will arrive later. _

_Ab imo pectore ignaris omnibus._

I had almost forgotten about the riddle with all that had happened since, but now I finally knew something more! A meeting, what would that be about? And more clues? Well, luckily I hadn't found the last ones that difficult. We would in Hogwarts and there wasn't much I didn't know about that castle.

"Can I see your supply list, Hermione?" Mrs Weasley broke my thoughts by asking.

"Sure," I said, quickly handing of the right bit of paper, feeling a bit flustered. "I'll go upstairs and check in with Harry and Ron." I quickly shoved the note in my pocket and almost ran up the stairs.

I opened the door to Harrys and Rons room with a bang. I saw a badge just like mine lying in Harry's hand and shrieked.

"I knew it!" I said excitedly, showing my own badge. "Me too, Harry, me too!"

"No," Harry said, shaking his head and handing the badge to Ron. "It's Ron, not me." I was confused. Why would anyone make Ron a prefect? Wouldn't either Dean or Seamus be a better choice, after Harry of course?

I sputtered for a moment, making Ron flush and look at me with a defiant expression.

"It's my name on the letter." He said. I tried to turn my reaction around and started to congratulate him, but before I had properly done so (thanks to a bloody annoying George) Mrs Weasley barged into the room. She started sorting some of Harrys and Ron's robes over their beds and asked for their supply lists. She mentioned that Ron might need some knew clothes and asked what colour he'd like.

"Get him red and gold to match his badge," said George, smirking. After that comment we were in for about a half hour of Mrs Weasley fussing about Ron, and about me as soon as she found out I was a prefect as well. Thanks for that Fred.

Mrs Weasley managed to get all of our supplies before lunch and ordered us to go pack our trunks. I had only dug in to a big of my trunks to reach some clothes and books, so it took me almost no time to pack it again. I added the new supplies Mrs Weasley had bought, noticing that she had bought a large sack of cat snacks. Crooks should like that. The rest of the afternoon was spend helping Ginny pack and just having girls talk. Ginny read some of the spells from the book I got her aloud and even I wished we were back at Hogwarts to try them out. Apparently there was a whole chapter on hair, including some ways to get rid of tangles. I couldn't wait to try that one out, should save me a lot of time when I brushed my hair.

During my time with Ginny, my mind kept wondering back to the letter. I hadn't had time to figure out what the Latin at the end meant. Also, my curiosity was eating at me. Who was sending these notes? And why did other people know about it? And why was the writer allowed to invite me? What rules were at play? I guess there was nothing for me to do, but waiting patiently until the clues would arrive. Would they be slipped into my bag again?

We were all a bit late getting to the train in the morning. Mrs Weasley had thrown me and Ron a party for becoming prefects and it had lasted till late in the night. Now there were apparently some troubles with Harry's protection, but I had been swept away by Remus, who was taking Ginny, the twins, Ron and I to the station. Mr and Mrs Weasley were with us as well. We quickly stuffed our trunks on the train, said our goodbyes and we were off.

Ron and I had to report to the prefect's carriage first, leaving Harry all alone. We felt bad, but it had to be done. Our head boy and girl explained everything we would be doing this year and what it meant to be a prefect. Ron was still scoffing about the being an example to younger students bit when we left the carriage and went looking for Harry.

They found him sitting with Neville, Ginny and a girl I didn't know yet. Ron immediately reached for some food, while I explained about the meeting. I also managed to insult the new girl. Apparently she was Luna Lovegood, the daughter of the Quibblers editor. How should I have known that? And the Quibbler was rubbish. Embarrassed I searched in my bag for my book to hide behind. When I pulled it out, I noticed I had also pulled out a slip of parchment that wasn't mine… The clues!

I quickly unfolded the slip and read it.

_A room abandoned from all use,_

_Looking at the rising sun._

_Memories of monsters hunt it,_

_Shapes that everyone fears._

_With the last rays of the day_

_We will meet there in two days._

Well, that made the time and date very clear, but where would this meeting be? Obviously the room was located on the east side of the castle and no longer in use. But there were a ton of unused classrooms in the east wing, it could be any one of those rooms.

Monsters… shapes that everyone fears. Was there something that everyone was afraid of? I couldn't think of anything really. Fear was pretty personal. While most people are afraid of spiders, not everyone is and it is likewise with most things. I needed Fantastic Beasts & Where To Find Them, but it was packed in the bottom of my trunk. I started going over Hagrids lessons in my head. There was no monster with different shapes. That's when it hit me. Remus' first lesson, the Boggart. That must be the monster they were talking about. Where had that lesson taken place? I wasn't sure anymore. Maybe I should ask Harry about it, he was good at remembering such things, while I often ended up lost within the castle.

Having solved the riddle as far as possible, I read my book for the remainder of the train ride. I then followed Harry and Ron to the carriages and into the great hall. Shortly after we sat down, Harry noticed the absence of Hagrid. I quickly scanned the staff table to, though it was fairly useless. Hagrid's size made him stand out in any line-up.

"He can't have left," said Ron, sounding slightly anxious.

"Of course he hasn't," said Harry firmly.

"You don't think he's . . . hurt, or anything, do you?" I asked uneasily.

"No," said Harry at once.

"But where is he, then?"

There was a pause, then Harry said very quietly, so that Neville, Parvati, and Lavender could not hear, "Maybe he's not back yet. You know — from his mission — the thing he was doing over the summer for Dumbledore."

"Yeah . . . yeah, that'll be it," said Ron, sounding reassured, but I bit her lip, looking up and down the staff table.

"Who's that?" I said sharply, pointing toward the middle of the staff table where a little woman dressed in horrible pink robes. Harry seemed to recognise her though.

"It's that Umbridge woman!" He said and continued to explain how he had seen her during his hearing. I feared she was going to be our new DADA teacher. The first years same in before I could share my concerns though and we watched the sorting ceremony in silence.

My fears turned out to be true when Dumbledore introduced Umbridge after dinner and it got even worse during her speech. The ministry would be butting into Hogwarts business. With all the anti-Dumbledore propaganda of this summer it couldn't mean anything good.

In a grim mood, Ron and I showed the first years to our common room, before heading up to bed. Just before I fell asleep I remembered the clues and that I had forgotten to ask Harry about the room.

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Let me know what you think!


	7. Chapter 7

So this might be the last chapter until new years. First there is Christmas and then I have a congress until New Years, so I won't be able to write. I hope you'll enjoy this one though, and when I write again, the real action is starting!

Oh I also created a tumblr account (horrible idea probably) and I'm planning to share some more background information about this story, so it might be interesting if you want to know more. MissLizet is also my username on tumblr, so it should be easy to find.

Happy Holidays!

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Chapter 7

When I got down for breakfast the next day, I noticed that Ron and Harry were avoiding Seamus and Dean. They walked by them at the table and sat at the far end. It's not as though we are best buds with them, but our year usually sat more together at the table than this.

"What happened?" I said, preparing myself mentally.

"Seamus happened." Harry said darkly, attacking his food. I looked questioning at Ron and he filled in, "Seamus believes the prophet. Apparently his mum almost kept him from coming back." That explained Harry's sour mood.

McGonagall came by to give us our timetables. Ugh. History of Magic first, followed by Double Potions. That must be the worst possible morning ever. I thought both subjects were bloody fascinating, the teachers just made it so unlikeable. Binns would just drone on and on for an hour and Snape would condemn every tiny little mistake there was to be found. Based on the groans around me, Harry and Ron felt the same.

During History of Magic, while I was making notes and Harry and Ron were dozing, I remembered my question to Harry. If I asked him here everyone would hear it, but during potions no one would. I just had to wait a little longer.

Snape treated us to a long speech about fifth year and I felt we would hear it again from other teachers. After that we had to make a simple potion. Well, I thought so, Harry and Ron might not agree. Luckily, Harry and I were working together and I got the chance to ask my question when Snape was talking with Malfoy at the other side of the class.

"Harry?" I began asking, but noticed he was slicing the flobberworms the wrong way.

"You're not doing it right," I said, taking the knife from his hand. "See, it's much easier this way." Harry took the knife again and grinned at me.

"Good being back, isn't it?" I grinned back at him.

"Harry, do you remember Remus' first lesson? The one with the boggart?"

"Of course," Harry said, smiling fondly. "One doesn't just forget about Snape in a dress." We both laughed, looking covertly at Snape.

"Do you also remember in which classroom the boggart was?" I asked him.

"I'm not sure," Harry said, seemingly thinking hard. "I probably could find my way there if need be. Why?"

"Could you show me? I remembered about a painting there that I would like to look at again." I invented at the spot.

"Sure."

Just before lunch, Harry showed me the old classroom where the boggart had been. Mentally I jumped up and down when it was indeed at the east side of the castle. This must be the place. I made sure to remember how to get there as I followed Harry to the great hall for lunch. We parted ways when he went to Divination with Ron as I set of for Study of Ancient Runes. I received another lecture about the importance of the OWLs. Unfortunately professor Babbling didn't have very different material than Snape and mostly repeated after him.

When I met up with Harry and Ron for Defence against the Dark Arts, I was preparing myself for another lecture about OWLs and all the other horrors someone from the ministry might bring. I had not expected what was to follow though.

When Umbridge, I refuse to call her professor, started her class, she immediately made clear how she thought about us. Treating us like little children. She proceeded to have us stow our wand and quills aside, while she wrote something on the board.

Defence against the Dark Arts

A return to basic principles

That couldn't be good. We were beginning our fifth year for Merlin's sake, we should have long past the basic principles. She continued to treat us like children whenever she asked the class as a whole a question and had us write down course aims. I noticed there were no practical aims. What was she playing at?

Minutes later, she asked us to start reading from the book. Of course, I had already read it. It was a basic book and I had read it in my second year. I remembered it well enough though. I raised my hand and looked at Umbridge. She pointedly ignored my, but I kept my hand up. I saw Harry noticed, but motioned that he should keep out of it. Slowly more students started looking at me and finally Umbridge paid attention to me.

"Did you want to ask something about the chapter, dear?" she asked me, as though she had only just noticed me.

"Not about the chapter, no," I said.

"Well, we're reading just now," said Professor Umbridge, showing her small, pointed teeth. "If you have other queries we can deal with them at the end of class."

"I've got a query about your course aims," I said. Professor Umbridge raised her eyebrows.

"And your name is — ?"

"Hermione Granger," I said.

"Well, Miss Granger, I think the course aims are perfectly clear if you read them through carefully," said Professor Umbridge in a voice of determined sweetness.

"Well, I don't," said Hermione bluntly. "There's nothing written up there about using defensive spells." There was a short silence in which many members of the class turned their heads to frown at the three course aims still written on the blackboard. No one else had noticed it apparently.

"Using defensive spells?" Professor Umbridge repeated with a little laugh. "Why, I can't imagine any situation arising in my classroom that would require you to use a defensive spell, Miss Granger. You surely aren't expecting to be attacked during class?" I immediately felt what way this was going to go and almost regretted speaking up, but Umbridge would learn with whom she was working. Ron butted into the conversation, but was quickly shot down for not raising his hand, so I raised mine again questioning her further. Unfortunately that's when Harry felt the need to join and the rest of the class after him. This wouldn't end well.

And it didn't. Things quickly escalated until we had reached the core of the problem. That the ministry didn't believe Voldemort had returned. She made low of Cedric's tragic accident, stating that he hadn't been killed. Why would she care that he was still in Mungo's. Harry rose to the situation as he always does and earned himself a ticket out of the class and to McGonagall. After he left, the fight seemed to have left the class and we were left to read. I spent the rest of the class looking straight at Umbridge, while she continued to avoid looking at me.

It turned out Harry had earned himself detentions with Umbridge for the rest of the week. McGonagall couldn't do a thing about it. The next day was filled with more speeches about OWL year, with McGonagall's as the longest and, in Ron's words, scariest. I was a bit preoccupied during a lot of it though, my mind already focusing on that evening. A meeting. Finally a chance to ask some questions and find out what the notes were about. I had looked up that sundown was about half past 9 this evening, so I had to be out after curfew, which ended at 9. My plan was to hide out in the library until 9 and then take the long way to the east tower.

After dinner, I told Harry and Ron that I was going to the library, and to no surprise, they thought little of it. Harry had to leave for his detention and Ron had apparently wanted to play chess with some fourth year. Glad to be rid of them so easily, I skipped to the library. I quickly found my favourite spot. It was in the muggle section, so Slytherins never came here at all, and it had a pretty good view of the entrance, even though I could not be seen. I noticed Dean entered around 8 as well. That was weird, I never knew he liked the library. It was only the second night back, so there weren't much people in the library. Only some Ravenclaws really.

When it was nearing nine, nearly everyone had gone from the library and madam Pince started closing down. That was my sign to start packing up to. As I walked out of the library I saw that Dean was also just packing up. I quickly hurried from the library, not wanting Dean to see me and walk together to Gryffindor tower. I walked around the corner and vanished through a secret passageway Harry had discovered with the map. It helped me get to the east wing, so I only had to get to the right classroom without being seen. Mentally I kicked myself, I should have asked to borrow Harry's map. Nevertheless, I reached the classroom without troubles. I softly opened the door and slipped in.

When I turned around and looked into the room I couldn't believe this was where we had our boggart lesson. The whole room was bathed in a red light from charmed candles everywhere along the wall. All the furniture had been cleared and in the middle there stood eight cloaked and masked figures. Their cloaks were red as well and blended well into the surroundings, their golden masks gleaming in the candlelight. It took me a while to notice that the eight weren't the only other people there. I noticed Padma and Terry and quickly stepped to their side. They looked excited to see me.

"I knew you would be in on this," Padma whispered. "You know what's going to happen?"

"Not a clue." I whispered back just as the door to the classroom opened again and Dean came in. So that's why he was hanging in the library, same plan as me. After gazing at the room for a few moments he noticed us and joined us.

"Why am I not surprised to see you here?" He joked at me, keeping his voice low. We didn't know why, but the presence of the cloaked and masked people made us keep quiet.

In the next ten minutes we were joined by Susan and Ernie from Hufflepuff and two Slytherins, Daphne and Theodore. Interesting, there were a boy and girl from every house of our year present. When the door closed after Theodore, something seemed to shift in the room and one of the cloaked figures took a step forward.

"Veritas odium parit." A male voice spoke from behind the mask.

"Stultorum infinitus numerus est." The other cloaked figures echoed together.

"Welcome to Ordo Vero Libero," The male spoke again. "We are a society unknown to most, but precious to some. Founded long ago we offer ways to develop one's self far beyond Hogwarts capabilities."

Another figure stepped forward and started to speak, "You have all been selected on intellect and potential for great things. We would like to welcome you into our folds if you prove yourself worthy."

Again, another figure stepped forward. "In the course of the next week a series of challenges will be brought to you. One every two days. Make sure you solve it before the next one arrives."

"When two weeks have passed and the weekend begins, meet here again at the fall of night for a final test."

"Sapere aude." All eight of them ended together. All flames within the classroom burned harder for a moment, creating a screen of smoke. When it had subsided after a couple of minutes, the cloaked figures had disappeared.

I turned to look at Padma, who looked just as puzzled as me.

"So what do we do now?" Terry asked to us in a whole.

"I guess we wait for the challenges." Daphne answered him, not sounding sure of herself. I had never actually hear her talk before. She was always very quiet, staying behind Pansy whenever I saw her. I knew she had good grades though, she was probably among the best five of our year.

"Well, see you in two weeks than." Theodore said arrogantly and moved to leave the room, Daphne trailing after him. The rest of us just looked at each other.

"I guess we should go too. It's getting late and we are long after curfew by now." Padma said. We all exchanged some 'good night's and 'see you later's and left the classroom. Dean and I walked together. I wondered why he had been selected. Sure he wasn't stupid, but wasn't Harry smarter? No one seemed to want Harry this year, not even this secret society. Dean was wondering aloud about the challenges we would get. He suggested we meet at the library tomorrow evening to see if we got the same challenges and I quickly agreed. When we neared the common room, we grew quiet and checked for any sign of Filch and his bloody cat. Safely inside we bid each other goodnight and both took different stairs to our dorms.

A secret society, who would have expected that. Before this summer I had never heard of one and now I knew of two. Did I want to be a member? I was curious as to what they meant with developing yourself beyond Hogwarts capabilities. I pretended to mull over it some more, weighing the pros and cons that I could think of, but in my heart I already knew I would go through all they threw at me, for my curiosity would never forgive me if I didn't.

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As always, let me know what you think!


	8. Chapter 8

Happy New Year!

The holidays are over, so I am able to spend some time on my computer again (so exhausting all those family visits and meeting friends etc). I'm hoping to go back to updating every other day, so expect something new this Sunday!

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Chapter 8

It was during breakfast the next day that my first challenge arrived.

A large school owl swooped down to me and landed next to my plate. In his beak, he held a small scroll which simply said to find out the true name of the Bloody Baron.

The Bloody Baron. I knew who he was of course, being the ghost of Slytherin House, he was seen in the Great Hall often enough. I was a bit scared of him though and didn't much fancy talking to him. In contrast to Gryffindor's Nearly Headless Nick, even the Slytherins barely talked with their ghost. Nearly Headless Nick! He might be a good place to start.

A quick scan about the Great Hall told me that I would have to make time to actually find Nearly Headless Nick. I did catch Dean's eye though and noticed he also held a small scroll in his hand. I smiled at him excitedly, before excusing myself to Harry and Ron to try and find Nearly Headless Nick before Arithmancy.

I found him hovering near the chandelier in the great staircase with another ghost, the Grey Lady I think she was called. I ran up a few stairs, climbing up as close as I could get before calling out to them.

"Sir Nicholas? Can I ask you a few questions?" Nearly Headless Nick looked down to me, signalled for me to wait and said something to the Grey Lady, before floating down to me.

"Ah Miss Granger. Whatever can I help you with?" He asked curiously when he was on my level.

"Well, I was wondering. All Gryffindor's know what your real name is and how you met your end, but I now barely a thing about the other ghosts. I was wondering if I could find it anywhere or if you could tell me?" I quickly rattled out. I had decided I shouldn't ask directly after the Bloody Baron. I should keep the challenges a secret and didn't have other reasons to want to know more about him especially.

Nearly Headless Nick seemed to ponder my question for a while.

"It is quite an interesting question you asked, Miss Granger. I doubt I would know any place where such things were written down. I might suspect we are mentioned in the book about Hogwarts, but we never really talked with any writers. Most other ghost are quite secretive, their reasons for staying on this earth far more complicated than mine. I was simply afraid, many other stayed because they feel guilt or similar emotions. I'd imagine you should talk to them yourselves." He concluded.

"But Sir Nicholas, not all ghost are as keen to be talking with us students as you are. I wouldn't dare strike up a conversation with, say, the Bloody Baron. Still, I am so curious about him most of all."

"Well, the Bloody Baron might indeed be quite difficult to handle. He has much regret of how he lived his life and it makes him the moodiest of us all. I could tell you what I know, though even I do not know his real name. He is a far older ghost than I am. I think he has been here since shortly after the school was founded. I think I heard him mention Salazar Slytherin once and assume he was taught directly by him. Further, I know the Bloody Baron is oddly attached to the Grey Lady, while she doesn't want anything to do with him. She has been a ghost as long as him. They might have even known each other when they were still alive." A bell rang through the castle, stopping Nearly Headless Nick in his ponderings. I said a quick goodbye to him, before hurrying to Arithmancy.

I had no further chance to work on my challenge until after the last lesson that day, Astronomy. I quietly followed Harry and Ron to dinner, while considering what I knew. Hogwarts was founded somewhere in the 10th century, so the Bloody Baron would be from that time, according to Nearly Headless Nick. I considered what I could make from his nickname. Would he have actually been a baron? It was pretty likely. I should be able to find a list of the barons from that time. There was a whole part of the library containing books that kept up with bloodlines and such. I would start there after dinner when I met Dean.

Next to me, Ron was trying to fit a whole bowl of potatoes into his mouth as once, while Harry was staring morosely at his plate. He had another detention with Umbridge in half an hour. Apparently all he had to do was write lines, but he seemed really appalled to have to go again. Maybe she was lecturing while he wrote? That would make me not want to go at all with the atrocious things she speaks of.

It was not long before Harry left for his detention. I walked out with him, leaving Ron at dinner on his own. Harry and I parted ways and I headed up to the library.

I had been in the library for half an hour when Dean showed up.

"Hey Hermione. So what do you have to do?" He said, while he sat down opposite of me. I looked up from my books. In my half hour wait, I had assembled a list of possible names for the baron. I had looked for the date of the founder's births and started from there and to the next 100 years. Better a bit too much names than to little. It gave me a list of 46 names whom I was now checking in an enormous book with all Hogwarts students in it. So far, I was able to verify 4 names.

"I'm trying to find out what the true name of the Bloody Baron is," I said. "It's quite difficult, but I think I'll figure it out."

"Did you ask him?" Dean asked. "I had to do something similar. I had to find out the name of the Fat Friar. I just went up to him and asked. He kept talking for about an hour before I could politely excuse myself, but he simply told me."

"You think that would work with the Bloody Baron even if I dared to talk to him?" I said sceptically. Dean frowned at that.

"I guess you're right. So how are you finding out?"

"I'm making this list of possible names and I plan to first ask the Grey Lady first. She doesn't really talk to students either, but she seems friendlier than the Bloody Baron. At last I'll verify by calling the Bloody Baron by his name to make sure it's right."

"Good plan," Dean said "Want help? I don't really have anything else to do."

Dean and I ended up checking the whole list and ended up with 7 Barons whom attended Hogwarts in the time range. After that, Dean found a way to narrow it down to 3 by searching whom had been in Slytherin. With nothing more to do, Dean and I started talking and I found out he rather liked reading too. Not as much as I did of course, but he had read his fair share. His true hobby was drawing though. He showed me a notebook full of scrabbles that I wouldn't be able to draw in my wildest dreams. Apparently, those were doodled during classes. Eventually we talked about the return of Voldemort. I found out that Dean believed Harry and Dumbledore.

"Why are you still talking to Seamus than?" I asked. Seamus had been on Harry's case since the year started, while Dean had simply done nothing.

"Didn't want to argue with him. He'll figure it out on his own. He always does." Dean said simply. While I felt like that wasn't a very Gryffindor answer, I did see his point. I didn't know Seamus that well, but I knew the boy was bloody stubborn. I had tried to help him with homework a few times. He wouldn't believe a thing until he saw it proven.

The next day I was a bit late for breakfast. Dean and I had stayed in the library until curfew, talking and laughing, and when we finally returned to the Gryffindor tower, we saw the Grey Lady float into an unused classroom. We hurried after her of course and asked to talk with her. She kept distant, but talked with us. She wouldn't really answer my question though. But by the way she looked a bit startled with one of the names I was almost certain that it was the right one. I just had to find the Bloody Baron to prove it. Once back in the common room, Ron whisked me away. He had found out why Harry disliked the detentions so much. He wasn't just writing lines, he was carving them into his skin. We sat for a long time after that, talking about all that had happened and what might be coming. It was really no wonder that I had overslept and was now hurrying down to the great hall to get some breakfast.

After breakfast I went through my day without ever seeing the Bloody Baron. When dinner went by I started to panic a little. Time was running out and I still wasn't sure. Besides, I had no clue as to how to let the order now that I completed my challenge. Ron had even noticed that I looked a bit frazzled during dinner, so it must be really bad. I had sprinted from the hall after a few bites and was now wandering the castle. Where would I go if I were a ghost and didn't want to talk to annoying students? I had already searched through the dungeons, but he hadn't been there. I had seen Peeves, but he hadn't been any help of course. He had followed after me for half an hour making fart sounds, until it began to bore him that I barely reacted to them.

By now, I was pulling my hair in distress. Curfew was only an hour away and I couldn't find the stupid ghost. I walked past the statue of the one eyed witch. The one eyed witch. The passageway. The Marauders Map! Would I have enough time to run up and get it? I feared not. What was I thinking? Hadn't I taught Harry that roddy Summoning Charm?

"Accio Marauders Map!" I said clearly and waited. A few moments later, a bit of parchment came floating down the corridor.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." I quickly whispered to the map and as the lines started to appear, I searched for the Bloody Baron. Ghost were on this map as well, right? Peeves was on it, so they must be. I couldn't find the Bloody Baron though. I saw Nearly Headless Nick so that soothed me a bit. His full name was written out: Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington. His whole name. I was looking for the wrong name of the Bloody Baron. I started looking for the name I thought it was and quickly discovered it up by the Astronomy tower. I didn't really have to go and check anymore, since the map had told me the truth, but I went anyway. When I saw the Bloody Baron floating about, I decided I didn't really need to disturb him. The map didn't lie, so I had finished my challenge and knew the right answer.

I locked and folded the map and undertook the way back to Gryffindor tower. I wondered how I should convey my answer to the order, but when I reached my dorm I found I was really far too tired to worry over it. Surely they had something in place to figure it out. I was out the moment my head met the pillow.

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Let me know what you think!


	9. Chapter 9

EDIT: Even more later than planned since fanfic refused to let me upload this yesterday... sorry!

So, a bit later than planned, but it's here! I do have a small request, I have a bit of trouble thinking of two of the challenges, so if you have an idea, please do share :)

For the rest, enjoy!

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Chapter 9

At breakfast I discovered how I was supposed to let the order know that I finished my challenge. The same owl as two days ago landed beside my plate, but when I tried to take the scroll from him, he backed away. I talked to him for a while, but he didn't budge. It dawned on me that he wouldn't give me the scroll before I told him my answer.

"Come here owl," I told the creature with a little annoyance in my tone. "I'll whisper it to you." Cautiously, the owl hopped closer to me and turned his head. He was looking at me, big eyes and his head held at an angle. I snorted at how he looked, before leaning in a bit closer.

"Guy III de La Roche, Baron de La Rochefoucauld." I whispered to the owl, whom in return let go of the scroll he held on to and flew off.

I quickly grabbed the scroll, but was interrupted from reading it as Harry and Ron arrived for breakfast.

"Why were you getting all chummy with that owl?" Ron asked as he started loading his plate.

"Just figured that owls can use a little love as well." I said with a wink to Harry. He was looking a bit glum, the lines on his hand already burning red. I would have to figure out something for that before it got much worse. Of course tonight would be his last detention with Umbridge. I just hoped he wouldn't be as stupid as to earn himself more.

Ron started talking about the upcoming quidditch try outs (apparently they were that night). Since Harry had found out that Ron was trying out for keeper, he hadn't stopped talking about it. I quickly excused myself and went back to the common room.

Once there, I unrolled the scroll and read my second challenge.

_Find the portrait of Lady Annabeth._

I didn't have a clue whom Lady Annabeth might be, but I did know what might be a good point to start. The Fat Lady was the biggest gossiper amongst the paintings. I doubted that she wouldn't know where Lady Annabeth hung.

I calmly walked out of the common room and waited in the corridor until it was nice and quiet.

I walked up to the Fat Lady and she was already watching me.

"Ready to go back in dear? Someone didn't show up?" She asked, mirth in her eyes. Apparently she had noticed me standing there waiting for the corridor to empty.

"Actually I wanted to ask you a question," I said, noticing the surprise in the Fat Lady's eyes. "I was wondering if you know where the painting of Lady Annabeth is situated?"

"Lady Annabeth?" The Fat Lady repeated wonderingly. "I am really not quite sure dear, but my friend Viola might know it. She gets around the castle more. You can usually find her at the third floor in the east wing. She's in a painting with three little lambs."

"Thank you!" I quickly said, before sprinting off. It was a good thing that I had a free period this morning.

When I reached the east wing, it was easy to spot the painting Viola was supposed to be in. Unfortunately for me, she wasn't there. What now? Wait until she came back? I noticed a couple of old man in the painting of a wine cellar on the other side of the corridor and decided to ask them.

"Excuse me sirs," I spoke up, but I doubted that they heard me. "Can you help me please?" I got the attention of one of them, who looked at me expectantly.

"Would any of you know when Viola will be back in her painting or where I can find her?"

"I'm already back dearie." A horrible high voice came from behind me. When I turned around I saw that the painting with the little lambs was indeed occupied.

"Why are you looking for me dearie?" Viola asked with a supposedly sweet smile.

"I was hoping you could help me find someone. The Fat Lady told me that you might know. I'm looking for the painting of Lady Annabeth."

"Lady Annabeth. Of course I know where her painting is, though I doubt that you would be able to find it." Viola said, turning her nose up. "What do you want with that horrible woman?" I wasn't quite sure how to answer this without revealing something about my challenge. I also wondered how horrible Lady Annabeth must be for Viola to even think she was horrible. Viola wasn't very nice either.

"I… eh…" I was quickly interrupted by Viola when I waited too long with my answer.

"Merlin's beard girl, it's a simple question!"

"I just read about her and I was curious." I blurted out the first somewhat plausible idea that came up in me. Viola didn't seem satisfied with the answer, but seemed willing to help me nevertheless. She picked up one of her little lambs and whispered to it, before looking back at me, while the little lamb scurried out of the painting.

"Follow little Billie. He'll show you where the painting of Lady Annabeth is."

It seemed to me that Lady Annabeth's painting was situated at the exact other side of the castle than Viola's. I followed the lamb, hurrying to keep up while he went from painting to painting. He only stopped when we were on the fifth floor of the West Tower. He nodded to the painting across the hall, before running off again.

When I looked around, I saw a huge frame, from the floor to the ceiling, portraying an old woman dressed in a Greek tunic. She smiled sweetly at me.

"Were you looking for me dear?"

"Eh… I was actually. Are you Lady Annabeth?"

"I am." Lady Annabeth replied with an indulgent smile.

"Oh well, that's good…" I trailed off, unsure of what to say.

"You are the first one to find me this year." Lady Annabeth added.

"The first one? Does everyone have to find you?"

"Only the girls. It's tradition. It has been this way for over a couple of hundred years." Over a couple of hundred years? That must mean that Ordo Vero Libero is at least that old. This little titbit of information made me wonder even more about this order. It is quite a feat to be that old and still be so unknown.

"I think I hear someone else coming, you should not be seen here right now. That new woman has come to check this corridor every day. I think she knows something."

"Umbridge?"

"That's her name, yes. I forgot. But you better hurry now dear. I'm sure we'll see each other again." I took her word for it and swiftly took off back to the common room.

I was quite fascinated by Lady Annabeth and what she had told me, but I worried mostly about Umbridge. I had been so caught up with my challenges that I hadn't put much thought to her, but I now realised she might be an even bigger problem than I imagined. If she was already patrolling parts of the castle on her own time. The lesson of DADA that afternoon did little to rest my worries. We weren't learning anything! We only had to read this idiotic book. Yes, I thought that, idiotic. I don't like to take off of books, but this was written for three year olds. You can't really call that a book yet. And OWLs were approaching. Something had to happen. Maybe I should start some sort of study group, like I did a few years back with transfiguration when a lot of people needed a little extra help on a subject. Only, DADA isn't my strongest subject. We would need someone outstanding for it, someone with a little experience. A natural. Someone like… Harry! He would be perfect.

I didn't get the chance to talk to Harry once DADA ended, since he had to go straight to detention. Ron headed off to the quidditch try outs and I was left on my own. Library it is than, I decided gleefully. I hadn't had the opportunity yet this year to simply wander around and see if I could discover anything new.

Later that night I was shook awake by Harry. The quidditch team had been celebrating on the new members, Ron was keeper now, but I had been so tired that I had fallen asleep in my chair. We exchanged a bit of chit chat, nut Harry seemed distracted. I soon found out what troubled him. Apparently his scar had hurt at the same moment Umbridge touched his arm.

"You're worried that You-Know-Who's controlling her like he controlled Quirrel?" I asked.

"Well," said Harry, dropping his voice, "it's a possibility, isn't it?"

"I suppose so," I said, though I wasn't convinced.

"But I don't think he can be possessing her the way he possessed Quirrell, I mean, he's properly alive again now, isn't he, he's got his own body, he wouldn't need to share someone else's. He could have her under the Imperius Curse, I suppose. . . ." I just didn't think that You-Know-Who controlling Umbridge was very plausible.

"But last year your scar hurt when nobody was touching you, and didn't Dumbledore say it had to do with what You-Know-Who was feeling at the time? I mean, maybe this hasn't got anything to do with Umbridge at all, maybe its just coincidence it happened while you were with her?" I tried, but Harry didn't buy it.

"She's evil," Harry said flatly. "Twisted." I thought that was a bit of an overstatement.

"She's horrible, yes, but… Harry, I think you ought to tell Dumbledore your scar hurt." That would be the wisest action. Dumbledore seemed to always know just a tad bit more about this whole ordeal between Harry and You-Know-Who.

"I'm not bothering him with this. Like you just said, it's not a big deal. It's been hurting on and off all summer — it was just a bit worse tonight, that's all —" Harry muttered.

"Harry, I'm sure Dumbledore would want to be bothered by this —" I tried, but Harry cut me off.

"Yeah, that's the only bit of me Dumbledore cares about, isn't it, my scar?"

"Don't say that, it's not true!"

"I think I'll write and tell Sirius about it, see what he thinks —"

"Harry, you can't put something like that in a letter!" I said alarmed. "Don't you remember, Moody told us to be careful what we put in writing!? We just can't guarantee owls aren't being intercepted anymore!"

"All right, all right, I won't tell him, then!" said Harry irritably. He got to his feet. "I'm going to bed. Tell Ron for me, will you?"

"Oh no," I said, feeling relieved, "if you're going that means I can go without being rude too, I'm absolutely exhausted.

We made our way around the common room, sending a quick wave to Ron which I doubt he noticed and we were off to our separate dorms.

The next morning when I woke up I felt absolutely no need to get out of bed. It was Saturday after all. I had already finished my challenge. I did have some homework, but it would only be an hour work tops. I just stared at the ceiling for a while. Crookshanks curled up on my stomach. I felt an odd quiet in myself, like a silence before the storm.

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Let me know what you think!


	10. Chapter 10

So I guess it's working again, so here's another chapter.

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Chapter 10

When I finally got out of bed and wandered into the common room, I found out that Ron had only just gotten up as well. We went to breakfast together.

Ron had only just stuffed in his first mouthful, when Harry joined us.

"Morning!" he said brightly, while sitting down.

"What are you looking so pleased about?" said Ron, eyeing Harry in surprise.

"Erm . . . Quidditch later," said Harry happily, pulling a large platter of bacon and eggs toward him, but I noticed how his eyes turned away and knew there must be something else he was happy about. Ron bought it though and asked if they could go a bit earlier to get more practise.

"Look, I don't think you should," I said seriously, "you're both really behind on homework as it —" But I was interrupted by the arriving morning post. I received my Daily Prophet and quickly scanned the front page.

"Anything interesting?" said Ron. I could hear he was eager to change the subject to anything but homework.

"No," I sighed, "just some guff about the bass player in the Weird Sisters getting married. . . ." I opened up and started leafing through the paper when something caught my eye.

"Wait a moment," I said shocked. "Oh no . . . Sirius!"

"What's happened?" said Harry, and he snatched at the paper so violently that it ripped down the middle so that we were both holding a half. I read aloud about the suspicions of Sirius being in London. Harry immediately started blaming people of course, but I shut him up and told them the rest of it.

"Well, he just won't be able to leave the house again, that's all," I whispered fearfully. "Dumbledore did warn him not to." Harry and Ron both looked down.

Soon, both Harry and Ron had left to go to the Quidditch pitch. I tried to get them to their homework, even threatening that I wouldn't let them copy of off me anymore. Of course it hadn't worked, but I still tried. Left on my own I decided I'd do my homework first. On my own it wouldn't take nearly as long as when Harry or Ron joined me. I made my way back to my dorm to pick up my books and claimed a table in the common room.

I was only halfway through the essay for Sprout on self-fertilizing shrubs, when I noticed some ruckus on the other side of the common room.

Fred, George and Lee were sitting in the centre of a group of first years, all of whom were chewing something. I glared at the brown bag in Fred's hand that was sure to be the origin and got to my feet. As I got up one by one the first years slumped in their chairs, their tongues lolling out. A lot of people around them were laughing, I however didn't think it was a laughing matter and walked over to them.

"That's enough!" I said forcefully to Fred and George, both of whom looked up in mild surprise.

"Yeah, you're right," said George, nodding, "this dosage looks strong enough, doesn't it?"

"I told you before, you can't test your rubbish on students!"

"We're paying them!" said Fred indignantly.

"I don't care, it could be dangerous!"

"Rubbish," said Fred.

"Calm down, Hermione, they're fine!" said Lee reassuringly as he walked from first year to first year, inserting purple sweets into their open mouths.

"Yeah, look, they're coming round now," said George. A few of the first years were indeed stirring. Several looked so shocked to find themselves lying on the floor, or dangling off their chairs, that I was sure Fred and George had not warned them what the sweets were going to do.

"Feel all right?" said George kindly to a small dark-haired girl lying at his feet.

"I-I think so," she said shakily.

"Excellent," said Fred happily, but the next second I had snatched both his clipboard and the paper bag of Fainting Fancies from his hands.

"It is NOT excellent!"

"Of course it is, they're alive, aren't they?" said Fred angrily.

"You can't do this, what if you made one of them really ill?"

"We're not going to make them ill, we've already tested them all on ourselves and this is just to see if everyone reacts the same—"

"If you don't stop doing it, I'm going to —"

"Put us in detention?" said Fred in an I'd-like-to-see-you-try-it voice.

"Make us write lines?" said George, smirking.

Onlookers all over the room were laughing. I had to do something about this and I knew there was only one thing the twins truly feared. I drew myself up to my full height, narrowed my eyes at them and spoke.

"No," I said, my voice quivering with anger, "but I will write to your mother." That shocked the twins, causing horrified expressions on both their faces.

"You wouldn't," said George, horrified, taking a step back from her.

"Oh, yes, I would," said Hermione grimly. "I can't stop you eating the stupid things yourselves, but you're not giving them to first years." With a last threatening look, I returned the clipboard and bag to Fred and marched back to my table. Too agitated to remain in the common room, I gathered my things and made way to the library.

I had been taking out my frustrations on my homework for a while when Dean interrupted me.

"Hey Hermione. What are you doing?" He asked in an annoying voice.

"Apparently writing an essay that is two inches to long." I said with a sigh.

"Aren't you essays always to long?" Dean asked with a smirk.

"Only when the subject is interesting to me and I always notice when I do. This subject is far from interesting to me and the weirdest is that I didn't notice." I said, staring at the essay in frustration. How had I not noticed?

"So what are you doing here?" I asked Dean, trying to focus on thing at hand. "You are not that common a sight in the library."

"Oh Seamus is the one that doesn't like the library. I don't mind being here. I'm just mostly hanging out with Seamus, so I'm not here that often. But I wanted to ask you something." Dean trailed of a bit.

"Well shoot."

"Did you finish your challenge yet?"

"Yes, why?"

"Do you think we are allowed to help each other?" Dean seemed to cringe a little when he asked this.

"I'm sure it's allowed if I give you a tip. So what do you have to do?"

"I'm supposed to find the painting of Balfour Blane. I did figure out who he is, but I have no clue as to where I could find his painting."

"Did you try asking the paintings themselves?" I suggested. Dean stared at me with an empty face.

"That's just so simple. Why didn't I think of that?" He seemed to talk to himself, which made me smile.

"I would suggest starting with Viola. She hangs at the third floor in the east wing. She's in a painting with three little lambs."

"Thanks Hermione!" Dean shouted, while hurrying out of the library, earning himself a glare from Madame Pinch. I had to supress a giggle at his antics. He had cheered me up a lot without even knowing. The rest of my homework flew by, I even mastered the spell set by McGonagall on the third try. I spend the rest of the day leisurely reading in the library.

The next day at breakfast, another owl came to me. This time it didn't wait for an answer, but just handed over the scroll and flew off again.

_You were the first one there, congratulations._

_Now, find a passageway to Hogsmeade._

Well, that was easy. I could name several passageways out of my head, so I didn't have to do a thing for this challenge. I could imagine others might find it more difficult though.

I spend the whole day with Harry and Ron in the common room. They were buried in their books, trying to get their homework done. Their pace was annoying even if I was doing something else (reading a book).

It was already past dinner when Harry finally made a smart comment.

"You know, we probably should try and get more homework done during the week," Harry muttered to Ron, as they finally laid aside Professor McGonagall's long essay on the Inanimatus Conjurus spell and turned miserably to Professor Sinistra's equally long and difficult essay about Jupiter's moons.

"Yeah," said Ron, rubbing slightly bloodshot eyes and throwing his fifth spoiled bit of parchment into the fire beside them.

"Listen . . . shall we just ask Hermione if we can have a look at what she's done?"

I smiled to myself, entertained that they didn't know I was paying attention to them.

"No," Harry said heavily, "you know she won't let us."

Harry and Ron kept working while the sky outside turned dark. At half-past eleven I took mercy on them and wandered over to them.

"Nearly done?"

"No," said Ron shortly. I peered over Ron's shoulder to read what he had written down so far.

"Jupiter's biggest moon is Ganymede, not Callisto," I said, pointing at the mistake, "and it's

Io that's got the volcanos."

"Thanks," snarled Ron, scratching out the offending sentences.

"Sorry, I only —"

"Yeah, well, if you've just come over here to criticize —"

"Ron —"

"I haven't got time to listen to a sermon, all right, Hermione, I'm up to my neck in it here —"

"No — look!" I pointed at the nearest window, Harry and Ron following my gaze. A handsome screech owl was standing on the windowsill, gazing into the room at Ron.

"Isn't that Hermes?" I asked, sounding amazed.

"Blimey, it is!" said Ron quietly, throwing down his quill and getting to his feet. "What's Percy writing to me for?"

It turned out Percy didn't have the most pleasant reasons of writing to Ron. He was advising to make better friends, friends whom didn't include Harry.

Harry tried to diffuse the tension by joking about it, but it didn't help. Angrily Ron started on his homework again, but this time I helped them. All the while keeping a close eye on Harry. He would be most hurt by this keeping brewing over it, while Ron would be angry until he simply forgot about it.

Harry had been staring morosely into the fire when he suddenly jumped a little. Moments later, Sirius' head appeared in that same fire, making me gasp.

I accused him of taking a far too great risk, but he shut me up and talked to Harry about his letter. I hadn't even know Harry send a letter at all.

Sirius did however provide us with some inside information we had been missing and shined a new light on Umbridge' behaviour. Apparently the Ministry was afraid that Dumbledore might be training us for his own army or something. It was preposterous, but that's what Fudge thought. It reminded me of my plans for a DADA group, but this wasn't the time to mention that. I was shook out of my reverie when Sirius suggested he come by on the next Hogsmeade weekend.

"NO!" Harry and I shouted together.

"Sirius, didn't you see the Daily Prophet?" I asked him anxiously.

"Oh that," said Sirius, grinning, "they're always guessing where I am, they haven't really got a clue —"

Harry started to explain his suspicions, but when he told Sirius that he didn't want him to come, Sirius looked a bit sour. He even managed to hurt Harry by saying he didn´t take after his dad after all, before disappearing from the fire. Harry stomped up to his dorm, Ron following him and I was left all alone in the common room. I thought about what Sirius had told us and feared what Umbridge might do. With a heavy heart I went up to bed, my moment of peace from the day before long forgotten.

* * *

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	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

The next morning, when I received my copy of the Daily Prophet and looked at the front page, I immediately spit out my pumpkin juice. Umbridge's face was printed across the front page.

MINISTRY SEEKS EDUCATIONAL REFORM

DOLORES UMBRIDGE APPOINTED FIRST-EVER "HIGH INQUISITOR"

Outraged, I read the article coming with it, reading important parts out loud for Harry and Ron, whom looked as outraged as I was. So much became clear to me at that moment. Most of all why we were stuck with her. And now she would be testing the other professors? Ron seemed to like that idea though, imagining how Professor McGonagall would react to being observed in the class. I almost felt sorry for Umbridge, almost…

We quickly hurried off to our first class.

I wasn't sure to be disappointed or glad when we hadn't seen Umbridge before our DADA lesson that afternoon. Just before class, I urged Harry to hold his temper. He was finally rid of his detentions, he should steer clear. Of course, I should have known my warning had little to none effect. He landed himself with another weeks' worth of detentions, after jumping in when I had subtly questioned Umbridge on her teaching methods. I wasn't the only one unhappy with this. Angelina, this year's Quidditch captain, threw a right fit in the great hall the next morning and McGonagall was far from pleased as well.

I decided to keep out of the racket and waited for the owl post. A new challenge should be arriving any moment. Sure enough, when the owl post came, a large owl landed on the table in front of me. I reached for the note, but the owl evaded me. I had to tell him my answer than. What passageway should I tell them? The one to Honeydukes was probably best.

"Beneath a one-eyed witch statue by the stairs to the DADA classroom is a passageway to Hogsmeade, ends in the cellar of Honeydukes." At those words, the owl let me take the scroll and flew off. With McGonagall still lecturing Harry across the table, I quickly opened the scroll and read my next challenge.

_Tell us something we don't know._

_Write it down on this paper, if it doesn't disappear we already knew it._

That was a cryptic challenge. Something they didn't know. That was difficult, I hadn't a clue as to what they would and wouldn't know. I guess anything that could be found in a book was out… so what then?

I was distracted as McGonagall finished her lecture and stormed off, followed by Angelina, and Harry sat back down at the table. He started whining about what happened and accused me of agreeing with McGonagall, which I did, he had it coming in my opinion. Apparently that offended him as he didn't speak to me all through Charms, giving me ample opportunity to ponder the challenge. Something they didn't know…

I hadn't figured it out by the time we reached Transfiguration and at that point I forgot about the challenge altogether. Umbridge was sitting in a corner with a clipboard at the ready. She was going to inspect Professor McGonagall and we would be here to see it, brilliant.

Umbridge managed to interrupt McGonagall three times in the first few minutes and was quickly shot down by her, to our amusement. After that, she sat scribbling on her clipboard for the rest of the lesson. It was only when we were packing up, that she left her place in the corner and went to talk with McGonagall. Harry, Ron and I hung back for a bit, overhearing their conversation, not that it was very interesting at all. Umbridge merely asked how long McGonagall had been teaching here.

When we saw her again during Care of Magical creatures, she took a different approach. One that McGonagall probably wouldn't have allowed. She asked the students all sorts of questions and Harry and I quickly noticed she was trying to find out about Hagrid. Malfoy had a field day with that, telling her all about his encounter with Buckbeak. Of course, Harry couldn't just stand by when he did so, which earned him another detention with Umbridge. I sighed, would he ever learn?

It was nearly midnight when Harry returned to the common room from his detention. Ron and I had been waiting up for him, feeling sorry that he had to suffer through this again. I had even prepared a solution of strained and pickled murtlap tentacles to soothe his hand. I pushed it to him anxiously. Harry stuck in his hand and immediately relaxed somewhat.

"Thanks," he said gratefully, looking me in the eye. Ron suggested he tell something about it, but Harry quickly shot that down.

"You know, I was just saying to Ron when you came in . . . we've got to do something about her." I said quietly.

"I suggested poison," said Ron grimly.

"No . . . I mean, something about what a dreadful teacher she is, and how we're not going to learn any defense from her at all," I said.

"Well, what can we do about that?" said Ron, yawning. " 'S too late, isn't it? She got the job, she's here to stay, Fudge'll make sure of that."

"Well," I said quietly. "You know, I was thinking." I shot a slightly nervous look at Harry and then plunged on,

"I was thinking that, maybe the time's come when we should just — just do it ourselves."

"Do what ourselves?" said Harry suspiciously, still floating his hand in the essence of murtlap tentacles.

"Well — learn DADA ourselves," I said. There I had said it. Finally. Of course, Ron started to complain about it being extra work.

"But this is much more important than homework!" I exclaimed. Harry and Ron looked as though I had grown another head.

"I didn't think there was anything in the universe more important than homework," said Ron.

"Don't be silly, of course there is!" I snapped at him. "It's about preparing ourselves, like Harry said in Umbridge's first lesson, for what's waiting out there. It's about making sure we really can defend ourselves. If we don't learn anything for a whole year —"

Ron mentioned that we couldn't do much by ourselves then and I went to my last part of the plan, explaining we needed a teacher. Finally saying that Harry could do it.

Harry started to object of course, but when he turned to Ron for help both he and I noticed that Ron had caught on to the idea. Ron was on my side now.

We both started firing off reasons why Harry should do it, but Harry didn't buy it. He flew of his rocket when we mentioned You-Know-Who, but in the end he told us he would think about it. That had been what I had been waiting for. Content, I went up to my dorm.

During breakfast the next day I remembered my challenge. I had forgotten it completely yesterday. Something they don't know. Harry sat down opposite me at that moment, grabbing for a cup with his injured hand. The injuries, Umbridges detention. As far as I knew, Harry had been the only one in detention with her. No one except Harry, Ron and I would know what you had to do during her detentions. That could be it.

I quickly grabbed the scroll from my bag and started to write.

_During detention with Umbridge, she makes you write lines. The lines are written with your own blood and appear engraved on the back of your hand as well._

I watched the scroll intently for a moment, but the words didn't fade away. Good, I had completed my fourth challenge. This whole order thing was getting me more and more. Their challenges expected you to think about things most wizards neglected to think about. It only made it all the more interesting to me.

When the next challenge arrived, it was accompanied by another comment, like when I had been first to Lady Annabeth's portrait.

_Yours was by far the most interesting piece of information we received._

_Now, find out which house elf cleans your dorm._

House elves? Really? I felt a huge smile growing on my face. I think I was starting to like this order very much if they even took notice of house elves. I was also intrigued by the question. I really didn't know who cleaned my dorm, even though I knew a couple of the Hogwarts house elves. In my attempt to free them last year, I had spent time getting to know them and found out that, unfortunately, they weren't really waiting for help. I did get Dumbledore to offer them pay and vacation days though, and while they all (except Dobby) refused pay, a couple of them did take the vacation days, so I thought of that as a small victory. Well, I guess I was going to make a visit to the kitchens again. I realised I hadn't actually been there yet this year, that was quite a shame really, I always enjoyed their company.

When I entered the kitchen, I was surrounded by elves within a second. They knew me by now and though they had been hesitant around me at first, when they thought I was trying to free them, they now respected me for the vacation days, which some of them appreciated very much.

"Does you want anything Miss Hermione?" A small house elf asked me, while a few others were trying to ask me similar things. I knew from experience they kept antsy when I didn't ask for anything, so I requested some tea and sat down at a nearby table. The tea was set before me only minutes later.

"So, did any of you do something fun this summer?" I asked the group as a large, hoping one of them actually did do something.

"Summer is very quiet here. No students to mess things up. We have lots of time left every day. I even spend a full three hours just lying in the sun, I really did." Mitty, one of the house elves I had befriended said.

"And I, I went swimming in the lake, I did." Another piped up. I smiled as more and more house elves told what they had done and hid my sadness that this was their reach of having fun, though I realised it were big things for them.

Dobby turned up as well, while I was sitting in the kitchen with my tea.

"How good to see you Miss Hermione!" He said excitedly.

"It's good to see you too Dobby. Are those new boots I'm seeing?" Dobby, of course, was a free elf and got paid by Dumbledore. That meant he wore clothes and bought new stuff often. He enjoyed socks the most I noticed, always wearing two different ones.

"Yes they are Miss, how good of you to see." I continued bantering with them for a little while, enjoying the simplicity of it, before I asked the question I had come for.

"I was wondering something though." I said, all eyes immediately turned to me. "Who cleans my dorm usually?" One of the elves stepped forward shyly.

"I does, Miss Hermione, did I not do it the right way?" He said and I noticed him reaching for a knife.

"No, NO! Everything was absolutely perfect." I said quickly. "I just wanted to thank you, is all. What is your name?"

"Thank me?" The elf said puzzled.

"Yes, I wanted to thank you. So thank you…" I let the end of my sentence trail off so he would fill in his name. Luckily it worked.

"Berk Miss Hermione, my name is Berk."

"Well thank you Berk, the dorm always looks perfectly clean and tidy." Berk seemed to rise up when I said that and I smiled again.

"But now it seems that I finished my cup of tea, so I am going again. Bye all!" I said, standing up and walking out of the kitchen.

It had been way to long since I had worked on their self-esteem, maybe once this order stuff was behind me and Umbridge wasn't as troubling, I could pick that back up.

* * *

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	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

When I woke up that Saturday, I was in no way ready to leave my bed. I was a morning person, always waking up early, but that didn't mean I didn't like to stay in bed a bit longer sometimes. I liked to just lay there and let my imagination run free. I was planning to do just that, when I realised that another challenge would be arriving at breakfast today. I quickly shoved Crookshanks off of my belly and started to dress. During dressing I noticed it was only 8 in the morning, owl post usually wasn't until 9. I had gotten out of bed too early in my haste. Time for a shower than.

When I walked through the common room, it was still pretty much empty. Not many Gryffindor's were morning people like me and in the weekend most of them slept until at least 10 o'clock. I was nearing the portrait hole, when I heard someone call out to me though. Surprised, I turned around and saw Dean was hurrying though the common room.

"Hey Hermione, good morning!" he said, coming up to me.

"Morning Dean." I replied, smiling at him. "You're up early." I knew from Harry and Ron that Dean was often the last one out of bed on schooldays.

"Didn't want to miss the owl post," Dean said, winking at me, letting me pass through the portrait hole first.

"I can understand that, made me get out of bed too." I grinned back at him.

"So I assume you competed all your challenges so far?" Dean asked.

"Of course I did, did you?"

"I did as well. Though this last one had me a bit worried. Did we get the same challenges?" Dean and I discussed our challenges on the way to breakfast. It turned out we got somewhat the same challenges. Of course we had already known that we both had to figure out the true name of a Hogwarts ghost, but we also both had to find a painting. Dean also had to find a secret passageway to Hogsmeade. He told me that Ron had told him and Seamus about the One-Eyed witch statue last year, so it hadn't been any trouble. After that he had to tell the order something they didn't know, just like me, he skimmed around telling me what he had told them though. Must be private? I wasn't keen on telling him about Harry's detentions either, so kept silent about it. Our last task had been the same as well, finding out which house elf cleans your dorm. Dean hadn't known where the kitchens were though, but he did know from Harry about Dobby, so he had called Dobby to an unused classroom and asked him. Turns out, Dobby cleaned their dorm. I should have known that, I thought, while giggling.

Dean and I were one of the few having breakfast already. Only the Hufflepuff table was reasonably filled, but since I recognised their while quidditch team it was easy to guess why. Dean and I moved on to talk about our classes and spend a good half hour complaining about Umbridge together, before the owl post arrived.

We both whispered our answer to the respective owls and received new scrolls.

_Name a muggle invention that has been adopted by wizards and how it has been altered._

That was easy. Though, I was a muggleborn. I could imagine that it would be a lot more difficult for the Slytherins. Next to me Dean grinned.

"Well, that's an easy one. I claim the radio." He said, stuffing the scroll in his pocket.

"Which one are you going to use?" He proceeded to ask me.

"I'm not sure yet." I said, contemplating. "I might just take the Hogwarts Express, but it's so obvious. Oh, I know! I'll use the printing press. It was invented by muggles, but quickly copied by wizards who found it much easier than charming quills to write the whole book."

"Wow, good choice. Maybe a radio is a bit obvious as well… but I'm sticking with it. Can you pass me the pumpkin juice?"

Dean and I sat talking at the breakfast table for a while, until Seamus, Harry and Ron turned up at almost the same time and we were forced to move away from each other. I was starting to like the dark skinned wizard more and more the more I talked to him. Why hadn't I really noticed him before?

The rest of the weekend was spend in the common room, reading and having fun with Harry and Ron. I eventually managed to get them to the library to do some homework, while I quickly fact-checked whether the printing press was actually first developed by a muggle. Luckily the history here proved to be much the same as in the muggle world until the point where a wizard became involved, several years after the actual invention. I also tried to talk to Harry again about the DADA group, but he seemed to know when I wanted to talk about it and made sure I didn't actually get a chance to bring it up. Ron still seemed pro DADA group though, when I talked to him about it, so I was sure Harry would turn around with some more time.

At breakfast on Monday, another owl arrived, just like they had every other day for the past two weeks. I told him my answer and received my scroll.

_You have successfully completed all individual challenges. _

_Please meet this Friday at the same location and time._

_Chocolate Frog Card._

So, the challenges were over then and there would be another meeting. Interesting. But why on earth was Chocolate Frog Card written on the note!?

For the rest of the week it kept bothering me why the note was ended with 'Chocolate Frog Card.' I mentioned it to Dean, but that didn't really help either. His note had just as strange an ending. 'Passageway.' What on earth did that mean? And what could a Chocolate Frog Card have to do with a passageway? I just didn't get it. At all. By the time it was Friday, I was so frustrated that even Ron had caught on. He and Harry were trying to figure out what was bothering me, but it only annoyed me more. They only thought it was funny though. During dinner, when they were still pestering me, I finally had enough.

"Would you just stop?" I almost yelled at them.

"We'll stop if you tell us what's got your knickers in a twist," Ron said grinning.

"What if I don't want to tell you?" I was starting to get exasperated.

Ron leaned to Harry and whispered loudly, "D'you reckon she's just on her period or something?" Harry did his best to not laugh and keep a straight face, but he failed miserably. I glared at Ron and stood up from the table, leaving my dinner for what it was, and marched out of the great hall.

Dean found me tucked away in a corner of the library, buried in 'Hogwarts a History.'

"Hey Hermione. Calmed down a bit?" He asked with a grin. I pretended to throw the book at him, but scooted over so he could come sit next to me.

"I guess I'm calmed down again." I said with a sigh. "I'm just not really that good with not knowing something."

"Yeah, Ron mentioned you were bothered by something." Dean was grinning at me again, telling me that Ron had also told him about me being on my period. Insensitive git. I glared at Dean and he raised his hands in defence.

"I didn't laugh. After all, I do know what was bothering you." Dean grinned again.

We spend the time until we had to go to the meeting having quiet fun in the library, before leaving and making our way to the unused classroom.

Padma, Terry, Daphne and Theodore were already there waiting for us, but apart from them the classroom looked perfectly ordinary. No candles, no cloaked figures. Just some old desks and chairs covered in a small layer of dust.

"Hey Hermione, Dean." Terry greeted us.

"Hermione!" Padma came up and gave me a hug. "We should really catch up sometime soon!" At that moment Susan and Ernie arrived as well. More greetings were exchanged, until we just stood there sort of awkwardly staring at each other.

"So… what should we do now?" Terry asked uncertainly.

"I guess this is another challenge." Daphne said quietly. "My note said the last one was the last individual one, I guess we have to do one together as well."

"But we don't know what our challenge is!" Theodore said. "They can't expect us to just magically know what to do."

"Maybe that's why there is a scroll laying on that table." Susan replied dryly, pointing at a table behind Theodore. He quickly grabbed the scroll and read it out loud for everyone.

_The final challenge, make sure you work together._

_You've got all the clues, solve it before midnight._

"What clues? All I got was one stupid word that doesn't make any sense." Ernie said.

"So did I!" several other people reacted. Soon, everyone had pulled out the scroll they received on Monday and they were laid out on the table.

_Potions_

_1742_

_Chocolate Frog Card_

_Passageway_

_Gesundheit_

_Healing_

_Painting_

_Smoking ears_

"This doesn't make any sense!" Theodore said annoyed.

"Maybe it does." I interjected. "We are supposed to find something with this. Potions and healing… and gesundheit and smoking ears!"

"A pepper-up potion!" Padma exclaimed.

"What does that mean?" Theodore asked annoyed. "That's hardly what we're supposed to be searching for."

"Maybe we have to find a portrait that has something to do with a pepper-up potion?" Daphne suggested.

"Perhaps a portrait of the inventor?" Dean suggested.

"Glover Hipworth." Terry said. "He invented the pepper-up potion. Wasn't he born somewhere in the 18th century? Than that number might be his year of birth."

"And isn't he on a Chocolate Frog Card as well?" Ernie asked.

"So we have to find a painting of Glover Hipworth before midnight?" Theodore asked. "That doesn't give us much time."

"The clues must also hint as to the location." I murmured, looking over the clues again. Potions… Why was it written in plural when it concerned only one potion?

"Guys, maybe it's in the dungeons. Somewhere close to the potions classroom?" I sneaked a glance at the Slytherins while I said so. Daphne's eyes lit up.

"There is a sort of gallery close by the potions classrooms. There are a lot of painting of famous potioneers. He could hang among them."

"How come I never heard of that gallery?" Terry asked surprised.

"There's a rug over the entrance, I doubt that anyone that isn't in Slytherin knows about it." Theodore said arrogantly.

"So let's go check it out!" Dean said quickly, cutting the building tension between Terry and Theodore. Padma gathered all the clues, shoved them in her schoolbag and we were off.

Daphne and Theodore lead us quickly to the dungeons. We had a close encounter when Mrs Norris crossed our path, but since Filch wasn't with her we just hurried along and hoped he wouldn't catch up. We went past the potions classrooms and stopped in front of a gloomy looking wall rug. Theodore held it aside and we all entered a two story gallery with portraits all around.

"So let's find Glover Hipworth!" Dean said with a grin and started to the left. I shook my head at him and looked at the closest painting. An old bald man was depicted there and I noticed our appearance had already woken him up.

"Excuse me sir?" I asked, approaching him. "Do you happen to know if Glover Hipworth hangs in this gallery?" The painting looked me up and down with a stern look before pointing down. I quickly located the stairs and walked to the lower level of the gallery. There were fewer paintings here, but they were bigger. The persons painted life sized. A quick look around led me to a loudly snoring portrait. The man had smoke coming from his ears and a large red nose. Must be Glover Hipworth. I remembered from a history book that the man had developed the pepper-up potion because he himself always had a cold.

"Guys! I found him!" I called out. At my call, the painting jerked awake and started to rub his eyes. As everyone gathered around he started to smile at us.

"Welcome. Welcome! New recruits I presume." He looked at us expectantly. When some of us nodded uncertainly, he clapped his hands.

"So, what's the password?"

"There's a password?" Theodore asked. "We don't know no password."

"Must be one of the clues." Padma said, retrieving the scrolls from her bag. Together we looked them over again.

"So it could be either Smoking Ears or Gesundheit. I think they are most likely." I murmured. At that moment the painting of Glover Hipworth sneezed quite loudly and I grinned.

"Gesundheit." I said politely. The painting grinned back at me, before sliding aside and revealing a dark passageway.

"Welcome to Bellus Locus." He said with a grin, waving us through.

* * *

Let me know what you think!


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